New WHO/ITU standard aims to prevent hearing loss among gamers

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) have produced the first global standard for safe listening in video gameplay and esport activities.

The standard, released on World Hearing Day 2025, aims to reduce the risk of hearing loss among gamers. Previously, no safe listening guidelines or standards existed for video gameplay devices or software.

“Everyone can take steps today to ensure good hearing health throughout their life,” said Dr Jérôme Salomon, WHO Assistant Director-General for Universal Health Coverage, Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases. “The WHO/ITU safe listening standard supports governments, manufacturers, civil society, and other stakeholders to foster safe listening environments, so that people of all ages can protect their ears and hearing, and even when playing video games, do not risk hearing loss.”

Growing risk exposure

Video gameplay and esports are rapidly becoming one of the largest entertainment industries worldwide. About 3 billion people play video games on devices such as personal computers, video game consoles, and mobile phones, yet most devices and games lack safe listening features to protect users from harmful noise.

However, gamers risk permanent hearing loss from prolonged exposure to loud sounds while gaming or listening to music. Children are particularly vulnerable due to their lower sound tolerance and growing interest in gaming.

By providing information, warnings and safe listening features, the new standard aims to inform video game players about the risk of hearing loss from loud video gameplay and raise awareness about how to practice safe listening.

“As video gaming and esports continue to grow and gamers use a wider array of devices to access their content, safe listening standards are vital to help protect the hearing of users, especially children, from sounds which could damage their hearing,” said Seizo Onoe, Director, Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, International Telecommunication Union. “Creating effective technical standards requires collaboration which leverages each other’s strengths. We are grateful to our partners at WHO for their insight and experience advancing safe listening, and are pleased to launch this update on World Hearing Day.”

Protection for all types of players

The WHO-ITU Global standard on safe listening for video gameplay and esports is designed to protect hearing for all types of video game players, across a wide range of gameplay scenarios and equipment. The standard provides separate guidelines for video gameplay devices (video game consoles, handheld or mobile devices and personal computers, headphones and headsets), and video game software.

For video gameplay devices, the standard recommends:

• Sound allowance tracking to measure the player’s sound exposure
• Safe listening messages that provide players with information on sound usage, including predictions on when their sound limit will be reached
• A user-friendly volume control system that can be easily adjusted
• A “headphone safety mode” that automatically adjusts the volume when a player changes between headphones and loudspeakers.

For video gameplay software titles, the standard recommends:

• Safe listening warnings and messages for players about the risk of hearing loss from loud sounds and prolonged exposure during gameplay activities
• Independent volume controls for different sound categories, allowing players to adjust levels and mute various sounds within the game
• Adapting the soundtrack, genre and sound design of each game with safe listening features
• A “headphone safety mode” within the software that is capable of detecting a switch of audio output between headphones and speakers and automatically reduces the volume.

Practices to make listening safe

The new standard was developed under WHO’s Make Listening Safe initiative which seeks to improve listening practices especially among young people, drawing on the latest evidence and consultations with a range of stakeholders, including experts from WHO, government, industry, consumers, and civil society. 

In addition to the new global standard released on 3 March, two other standards for safe listening were launched in 2019 and 2022, including the H.870 WHO-ITU Global standard for safe listening personal audio devices and systems and the WHO Global standard for safe listening in venues and events (also adopted by ITU in 2024).

Learn more about World Hearing Day 2025 and the Make Listening Safe initiative.

Adapted from a WHO press release, 28 February

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