Police officers hang a banner at Daejeon Station, Wednesday, urging people refrain from using smartphones while walking or driving. The police said the station has been crowded with "Pokemon Go" users because the location has been rumored to have a higher regeneration rate of Pokemon creatures. / Yonhap



By Yoon Sung-won





The "Pokemon Go" augmented reality mobile game has started causing concerns here as gamers are out hunting down Pokemon at the risk of their safety.

Based on location-based technology, the game involves outdoor activities as users travel around to capture creatures generated randomly.

Users are asked to pay particular attention while playing "Pokemon Go" on streets because its developer, U.S. game studio Niantic, has stressed that it does not take any responsibility over damage inflicted while playing the game.

The police said it is difficult to crack down on drivers who play "Pokemon Go" behind the wheel. Under the Road Traffic Law, activating a visual device such as a smartphone or mini-TV while driving can be punishable with a fine of 60,000 won ($52.33) and 15 penalty points on the driver's license.

"Pokemon Go will clearly increase the danger of traffic accidents because it is designed to make users roam around to play the game," said Kim Hyeong-nam, a police official in charge of traffic safety at Eunpyeong Police Station in northwestern Seoul.

"We believe playing mobile games while driving is as dangerous as watching mobile TV, which is subject to punishment. But it is difficult to catch drivers playing mobile games because drivers have darker tinted car windows. Even when we find such acts, they just turn off the app and try to drive away."

The police official said the National Police Agency has not released directions to tighten clampdown on such motorists. He said the police are boosting surveillance for possible accidents starting with stepping up road safety guidance.

"We started public relations activities to inform smartphone users about the danger of using the handset while driving or walking," Kim said.

"We will particularly target young students to let them know that playing mobile games or using social media like Facebook and Kakao Story can lead to accidents. As the new semester has started, we have sent official letters to visit schools for extra safety education."

On Saturday, the police caught a driver who was using his smartphone while driving in Taebaek, Gangwon Province.

During the last six months since Niantic rolled out "Pokemon Go" in July, people have been killed due to accidents around the globe while playing the game. In Japan, a car ran over two pedestrians, killing one of them. The driver, in his 30s, turned out to be playing the game while driving. In Australia and the United States, multiple "Pokemon Go" users fell from guardrails while playing the game.

Besides accidents, the police also said mindless playing of "Pokemon Go" may cause other public disorder such as trespassing in restricted areas or on privately owned land, cheating and data leaks.

A office worker surnamed Cho, a father of two young sons in his mid-30s, said he would never allow his sons to play "Pokemon Go" without him watching out of safety concerns.

"When I come back home from work, my elder son, who has been so into Pokemon Go these days, badgers me for my smartphone to play it," he said. "But I never allow him to play it alone, especially outdoors, because it seems to be a dangerous idea to let a child walk down the streets with all his attention fixated on the smartphone."

Niantic unexpectedly released "Pokemon Go" in Korea on Jan. 24, about six months later than the global release.

Releasing "Pokemon Go" in Korea on Jan 24, Niantic's chief art director Dennis Hwang said the company has improved features for safety issues.

"Game play stops when the user is moving faster than a certain speed. When the app detects fast movement, the user needs to confirm that they are not driving a car to continue playing," Hwang said.

"Safety is one of the most important factors for us. We would like to suggest users look around before playing Pokemon Go and avoid playing it in a car."

Even amid controversies involving the dispute between the Korean government and Niantic's parent company Google over the nation's map data export, "Pokemon Go" has drawn heated popularity here.

According to mobile app research firm WiseApp, "Pokemon Go" has recorded 7.5 million downloads between Jan. 24 and 29. Expectations are that the number will reach 10 million this week.