Following the National Classification Scheme Review undertaken by the Australia Law Reform Comission last year, the office of Minister for Home Affairs Jason Clare has begun acting on recommendations from the study, having today announced the "first stage of reforms to the National Classification System", to be introduced into the Australian Federal Parliament, when sitting resumes this winter (thanks Gamespot).

Actions based on seven of the review's recommendations are outlined in the announcement, with the most interesting from a videogames perspective, being the agreement to implement an "automated classification decision making system", which intends to be initially put to use classifying online and mobile games -- a category that has long been firmly in the too hard basket.

Ministers agreed to:

• broaden the type of content that is exempt from the scheme and reduce the red tape associated with running festivals;
  
• enable the use of automated classification decision making systems, starting with a pilot for mobile and online computer games;
  
• include classification marking requirements in the Commonwealth Classification Act and revamp existing statutory instruments so they are clearer and simpler;
  
• change the rules so that 2D and 3D versions of films or computer games no longer need to be classified twice;
  
• change the rules to allow minor modifications to be made to computer games without further classification;
  
• a program of research to examine current classification categories, symbols and community standards in relation to media content; and
  
• give explicit power to Commonwealth officials so that they can notify law enforcement authorities of content that is potentially Refused Classification prior to classification by the Classification Board.

Ministers will consider further reform at the next meeting of the Standing Council on Law and Justice in October.

No details have been disclosed about how such an automated system would actually function, but it certainly raises a lot of questions, and is difficult to fathom how it could offer a better result than the industry-regulated ESRB system used in North America.