CERTA Rules June 'Entertainment Ratings and Labeling Awareness' Month

For the third consecutive year, the Coalition of Entertainment Retail Trade Associations (CERTA), including video game related trade associations, has declared June "Entertainment Ratings and Labeling Awareness Month." As violence and nudity in games is increasingly a hot political issue, the entertainment industry tries to make parents more knowledgeable of the tools readily available to them in choosing or regulating their children's entertainment - thus CERTA's announcement. CERTA states the purpose of the designation is "to increase parents' awareness of the ratings and labeling systems for movies, music, and video games and let parents know that stores, online services, and movie theaters are committed to helping them control their children's access to entertainment that is inappropriate for minors." The group reasons that the matter is of particular import during June, since it is normally the beginning of summer vacation for most children. CERTA is made up of the Digital Media Association (DiMA), the recently formed Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA) (which was the result of a merger between the Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association (IEMA) and the Video Software Dealers Association (VSDA), and represents more than 1,000 companies throughout the United States, Canada, and other nations), plus the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM), and the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO).