Education & Outreach
While the vast majority of parents are aware of the ESRB rating system and regularly use it, there is always more that can and should be done. ESRB engages in aggressive public education and outreach efforts that promote the ESRB rating system, explain how it works and encourage parents to use it. We also develop tools and resources to help parents manage their children's video games, including guides about parental controls and information related to online safety. All of these efforts help ESRB fulfill its mission of helping parents choose age-appropriate video games for their children and families.
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PSAs: "OK To Play? -
Check The Ratings"
Originally introduced in Fall 2003, the ESRB continues to expand the award-winning "OK To Play? - Check The Ratings" consumer education campaign. The campaign generates over a billion consumer impressions annually through print, television, radio and online PSA advertising and an expansive retail partnership program. An aggressive public relations initiative also supports these efforts through news stories on television, radio, in print and online informing parents about the rating system.
Our current PSAs can be viewed in our PSA Library. If you are interested in placing our PSA advertising in your publication or media outlet, please contact us.
Retail Partnerships
Helping consumers make informed purchase decisions at the point of sale is critical, and so ESRB works closely with retailers to help ensure that their stores display signage about the ESRB rating system, train their store associates about the ratings and enforce their store policies regarding the sale or rental of M-rated games. To further this commitment, the ESRB Retail Council (ERC) was launched in 2005 to support ratings education and store policy enforcement. Click here for more information about ESRB's retail partnerships and the ERC.
Search Tools
ESRB offers several tools for finding a game's rating information, including its rating summary. By using ESRB's mobile website (m.esrb.org) or free mobile apps parents can look up a game's rating and rating summary right from the store aisle, which is when they need this information most. We've also developed the ESRB rating search widget which can be downloaded on partner websites, placed on a social networking page or personal homepage, and emailed to a friend.
Social Media
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To facilitate an online, ongoing conversation with parents about issues related to their kids' video games - including everything from the rating system, parental controls, online safety and recent stories and tips related to effectively managing media in one's household - ESRB is on both Facebook and Twitter (@OKtoPlay). Significant outreach is also done to engage parent-focused blogs and bloggers who are receptive to video game issues and have been eager to educate their readers about ESRB ratings, rating summaries and the various tools available to parents.
Partnership Marketing
ESRB is actively partnering with a variety of organizations to provide ratings education materials to parents and other consumers. This includes commercial and non-profit organizations, Internet sites, various state and local governmental bodies and many other partners.
Following are some examples of ESRB partnerships illustrating how ratings education materials can be effectively distributed to those who need them most - parents. If you're interested in more information about partnership marketing opportunities with the ESRB, please contact us.
Parent Teacher Association (PTA)
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In April 2008, the ESRB and Parent Teacher Association (PTA) teamed up to develop and distribute a booklet for parents that provides information about ESRB ratings, step-by-step instructions for setting up parental controls for all new game platforms (Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DSi, Sony PLAYSTATION3 and PSP, and Microsoft Windows 7/Vista), a family discussion guide about video games, and guidance for parents about online-enabled games and what they can do to ensure that their child’s experience when playing games online is safe and secure. The booklets were distributed to all 26,000 PTAs, and are available in both English and Spanish on both the ESRB and PTA websites.
In November 2006, the ESRB and PTA launched a ratings education campaign which encouraged and enabled state and local PTA chapters to educate their community’s parents about the ratings through their regular meetings. Various informational resources were made available including brochures in both English and Spanish as well as online support through both the PTA and ESRB websites. For more information on this partnership, click here.
