The Countdown to China's Video Crackdown
Jan 30, 2008
Tomorrow is the day when new regulations on Internet video content go into effect in China, and it's still unclear what the full impact of the rules will be.
Never one to shy away from monitoring its citizens' online activities, the Chinese government announced late last year that it would require any Web site that features video content to censor its users and to report content violations to Chinese authorities (or face stiff penalties).
The new policy also forces site owners to get a license that is only available to companies that qualify as state-owned. That includes video sharing sites where the majority of the content is user-generated. According to the Associated Press, it's "a break from other online content rules, which compel private companies to enforce censorship but let them operate on their own."
While the AP's report suggests that site owners will find ways to circumvent the rule about state-ownership in order to keep operating, it remains to be seen how the new rules will be applied when it comes to individual Web users who want to share videos within China. For more, check out the AP article here.
Tags:
China, Internet censorship, video
