Chinese Govt imposes fresh controls on online video shows

China has made it compulsory for presenters of streamed online video shows to register with their real names from January as part of a series of measures to tighten control over content on the Internet.

The rules oblige operators of online shows to identify presenters via interviews or video calls, and apply for licenses from provincial cultural authorities which will be filed with the ministry, the Cultural Ministry said.

The regulation also states that operators should obtain a permit from the ministry before offering channels to presenters from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), Macao SAR, Taiwan and foreign countries, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Operators must carry out real-time supervision of performances and keep records of all the shows.

A mechanism for handling emergencies should be established, and once they detect content that violates laws and regulations in the shows, operators must suspend services, preserve relevant data, and report the matter to authorities.

A blacklist will be created to strengthen management of online performances and ensure the sector’s healthy and orderly growth.

The new regulation came after a recent report stating that video streaming is booming in China with a large user base expanding to 514 million and a growing number of paid users, creating unprecedented business opportunities.

As of June, the number of streaming service users reached 514 million, accounting for 72.4 per cent of China’s Internet population, according to the 2016 China Online Streaming Development Study Report, released by China Netcasting Services Association (CNSA).

The association was set up in 2011 and published its first report in 2015.

The 2016 report says watching video online has become the primary form of online entertainment in China, tailed by online gaming and reading literature, Xinhua reported.

It also shows 35.5 per cent of streaming users paid for content this year, rising 18.5 percentage points year-on-year.

It is the fastest annual growth in recent years. Most of the paid users are monthly subscribers.

Zhou Jie, deputy secretary of the CNSA, said the trend suggests good commercial potential of the sector.