Video game company Sony Computer Entertainment says it will prohibit South Koreans under the age of 16 from using its PlayStation online network.

Sony says it is taking the action rather than try to comply with a controversial new night-time national gaming ban. Regulations to go into effect next week will prohibit South Koreans below the age of 16 from playing online games between midnight and 6 a.m.

The law, set to take effect Nov. 20, was approved by the National Assembly in April. Proponents of the ban say it is designed to combat game addiction among younger students.

A study conducted in 2009 by the Korea Creative Content Agency concluded that about 7 percent of the nation's primary and secondary schoolchildren are addicted to computer games.