What Games Rating Authority does

Games Rating Authority (GRA) is a UK government-appointed regulatory body that administers the PEGI (Pan European Game Information) age rating system for video games in the United Kingdom. Registered as a private Limited Company in the UK (Company No. 2402805), GRA issues standardized age classifications of 3, 7, 12, 16, and 18, alongside content descriptor icons covering violence, fear/horror, bad language, sex, drugs, and gambling. PEGI 12, 16, and 18 ratings are legally enforceable for physical game distribution in the UK, giving retailers a statutory basis to refuse sales to minors.

The organization operates a multi-channel information platform consisting of an official website with a searchable game database, a PEGI mobile app for iOS/Android, and dedicated resource hubs for parents, schools, and retail members. Its products include the PEGI Ratings system, Tools for Parents, Game Search, the Schools Program, the Retail Members Program, a News Hub producing ongoing editorial content, and Content Descriptors. GRA works in collaboration with the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) and Video Games Europe to administer the unified PEGI framework.

GRA operates as a non-profit/regulatory organization appointed for public benefit, with no commercial pricing model. Revenue is not publicly disclosed, and the organization has no disclosed funding rounds, external investors, or commercial customer relationships. Its customer base spans four persona segments — Parents and Families (primary), Schools and Educational Institutions, Retail Members, and Game Publishers/Developers — with no individual customer logos or commercial revenue concentration. The business model relies on UK government appointment and statutory authority rather than commercial monetization.

Name

Games Rating Authority

Legal name

Games Rating Authority

Website

https://gamesratingauthority.org.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Games Rating Authority is the UK government-appointed body administering the PEGI video game age rating system, issuing legally enforceable classifications (3, 7, 12, 16, 18) and content descriptors for parents, schools, retailers, and publishers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Video Game Age Rating and Content Classification Services

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

KYC/Identity Verification & Age Verification Compliance Services (MPAEAOAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Gaming Regulatory Consulting & Advisory (MPAEAOAA), Publishing Services Providers (Ratings, Compliance, Certification, Release Ops) (MPAFABAL)

Keywords

• Video game ratings
• Age classification system
• Content descriptors
• Parental controls
• Online safety resources

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Games Rating Authority is the UK government-appointed body that issues official PEGI age ratings (3, 7, 12, 16, 18) for video games. It provides standardized content descriptors covering violence, fear/horror, bad language, sex, drugs, and gambling, and operates a searchable game database, mobile app, and educational resources for parents, schools, and retailers. PEGI 12, 16, and 18 ratings are legally enforceable in the UK for physical game sales and rentals.

Product overview

Games Rating Authority (GRA) is a UK government-appointed body that administers the PEGI (Pan European Game Information) rating system for video games. The organization offers a unified platform of products including standardized age ratings (3, 7, 12, 16, and 18), content descriptor icons, a game search database, parental control tools, and educational resources for schools and retailers. PEGI 12, 16, and 18 ratings are legally enforceable in the UK for physical game distribution. The GRA works in collaboration with the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) and Video Games Europe.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PEGI Ratings

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB): The North American video game age rating body. Directly comparable to GRA: issues age and content descriptors (E, T, M, AO) for video games, enforces ratings via retailer/platform partnerships, and provides parental tools. ESRB is GRA's closest functional analogue in a different jurisdiction.
• Classificação Indicativa (Brazilian Advisory Rating System): Brazil's official age rating system for games, administered under the Ministry of Justice. Comparable to GRA as a national statutory authority classifying video games by age, with content descriptors and consumer protection goals.
• Australian Classification Board: Australia's statutory classification body for films, games, and publications. Comparable to GRA because it issues legally enforceable age ratings for video games and operates under government appointment with a similar consumer-protection mandate.
• Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle (USK): Germany's official video game age rating body under the German Youth Protection Act. Comparable to GRA as a national statutory rating authority; both administer ratings within the broader PEGI pan-European framework and serve analogous regulator/parent/publisher constituencies.
• Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC): South Korea's video game rating authority. Directly comparable to GRA as a national body that classifies games by age, issues content descriptors, and operates under government oversight for consumer protection in its market.
• Video Standards Council (VSC): UK body historically associated with PEGI rating administration and retailer compliance. Highly comparable to GRA given overlapping role in PEGI rating enforcement, retailer membership programs, and consumer-facing rating communications in the UK.
• Computer Entertainment Rating Organization (CERO): Japan's video game rating body. Comparable to GRA because it issues age classifications and content descriptors for video games sold in its jurisdiction, supported by platform/retailer enforcement, with a similarly consumer-protection-oriented mission.

Others

• Pan European Game Information (PEGI): The pan-European rating framework that GRA administers within the UK. Directly related to GRA as the upstream system whose standards, descriptors, and policies GRA implements nationally; functions more as the operating framework than a competitor.

Broad incumbents

• British Board of Film Classification (BBFC): UK statutory body for film and video classification that collaborates directly with GRA. Comparable because BBFC provides age ratings and content standards in the same UK regulatory ecosystem and partners with GRA on hybrid BBFC/PEGI labelling for certain physical releases.
• International Age Rating Coalition (IARC): Coalition that streamlines age ratings across multiple jurisdictions (including PEGI, ESRB, USK, GRAC, ClassInd). Comparable to GRA as a cross-jurisdictional rating infrastructure participant; relevant where GRA's classifications need to interoperate with global digital storefronts.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/games-rating-authority

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Games Rating Authority