LinkMicrosoft joins hands with Yahoo!, Google to censor China's web
BEIJING (AFP) - Users of Microsoft's new China-based Internet portal have been blocked from using the words "democracy", "freedom" and "human rights" in an apparent move by the US software giant to appease Beijing.
Other words that could not be used on Microsoft's free online blog service MSN Spaces include "Taiwan independence" and "demonstration".
Bloggers who enter such words or other politically charged or pornographic content are prompted with a message that reads: "This item should not contain forbidden speech such as profanity. Please enter a different word for this item".
Officials at Microsoft's Beijing offices refused to comment.
Internet sites in China are strongly urged to abide by a code of conduct and self-censor any information that could be viewed by the government as politically sensitive, pornographic or illegal.
For many Chinese websites, such content also includes news stories that the government considers unfavorable or does not want published.
New regulations issued in March now require that all China-based websites be formally registered with the government by the end of June or be shut down by Internet police.
Microsoft formed its portal joint venture with China's state-funded Shanghai Alliance Investment Ltd (SAIL) last month to launch the MSN China web portal.
Microsoft is not the only international tech company to comply with China's stringent Internet rules.
Yahoo! and Google -- the two most popular Internet search engines -- have already been criticized for cooperating with the Chinese government to censor the Internet.
The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) earlier said it "deplores the irresponsible policies of United States Internet firms Yahoo! and Google in bowing directly and indirectly to Chinese government demands for censorship".
It has called on the United States to apply the principles of its Global Internet Freedom Act on its private sector's activities in "some of the world's most repressive regimes".
The Global Internet Freedom Act, passed by the US House of Representatives in July 2003, aims to combat online censorship imposed by governments around the world.
In their efforts to conquer the Chinese market, Yahoo! and Google are "making compromises that directly threaten freedom of expression," RSF has said
SHANGHAI, China - Authorities have ordered all China-based Web sites and blogs to register or be closed down, in the latest effort by the communist government to police the world of cyberspace.
Commercial publishers and advertisers can face fines of up to 1 million yuan ($120,000) for failing to register, according to documents posted on the Web site of the Ministry of Information Industry.
Private, noncommercial bloggers or Web sites must register the complete identity of the person responsible for the site, it said. The ministry, which has set a June 30 deadline for compliance, said 74 percent of all sites had already registered.
"The Internet has profited many people but it also has brought many problems, such as sex, violence and feudal superstitions and other harmful information that has seriously poisoned people's spirits," the MII Web site said in explaining the rules, which were quietly introduced in March.
All public media in China is controlled by the state, though limits on the Internet have tended to lag behind as advances in technology and the Web's rapid spread outstripped Beijing's ability to keep tabs on users and service providers.
China has more than 87 million Internet users, the world's second largest online population after the United States.
The government has long required all major commercial Web sites to register and take responsibility for Internet content ? at least 54 people have been jailed for posting essays or other content deemed subversive online.
But blogs, online diaries, muckraking Web sites and dissident publishing have been harder to police. According to cnblog.org, a Chinese Web log host company, the country has about 700,000 such sites.
Now, however, the government has developed a new system to track down and close those caught violating the rules, the ministry said.
"There's a 'Net Crawler System' that will monitor the sites in real time and search each Web address for its registration number," said one document listing questions and answers about the new rules. "It will report back to the MII if it finds a site thought to be unregistered."
The press advocacy group Reporters Without Borders protested the new rules, saying they would force people with dissenting opinions to shift Web sites overseas, where mainland Chinese users might be unable to access them due to government censorship filters.
The Paris-based group said that in May, many bloggers in China received e-mail messages telling them to register to avoid having their blogs declared illegal.
"Those who continue to publish under their real names on sites hosted in China will either have to avoid political subjects or just relay the Communist Party's propaganda," the rights group said. "This decision will enable those in power to control online news and information much more effectively."
The latest restrictions follow many others. Authorities have closed down thousands of Internet cafes ? the main entry to the Web for many Chinese unable to afford a computer or Internet access.
They've also installed surveillance cameras and begun requiring visitors to Shanghai Internet cafes to register using their official identity cards ? all in an effort to keep tabs on who's seeing and saying what online.
Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
It's our government's responsibility to make the political statements and they've already done that. China doesn't comply. So what shall we do now because of it? Invade?
Even if it means "human exploitation"?Originally posted by: Kenazo
Well said. It's really not a corporation's responsibiltiy to be anything but a money making machine, what individuals that profit from the machine do is up to them. The market will dictate.Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
What ever happened to ethics? What about 'doing the right thing' or simply doing things that you wouldn't be ashamed of.Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
It's our government's responsibility to make the political statements and they've already done that. China doesn't comply. So what shall we do now because of it? Invade?
Originally posted by: JacobJ
What ever happened to ethics? What about 'doing the right thing' or simply doing things that you wouldn't be ashamed of.Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
It's our government's responsibility to make the political statements and they've already done that. China doesn't comply. So what shall we do now because of it? Invade?
Shame on microsoft for contributing to the human rights mess in china.
Originally posted by: Kenazo
Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
Well said. It's really not a corporation's responsibiltiy to be anything but a money making machine, what individuals that profit from the machine do is up to them. The market will dictate.
Originally posted by: her209
Even if it means "human exploitation"?Originally posted by: Kenazo
Well said. It's really not a corporation's responsibiltiy to be anything but a money making machine, what individuals that profit from the machine do is up to them. The market will dictate.Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
Originally posted by: Kenazo
Originally posted by: her209
Even if it means "human exploitation"?Originally posted by: Kenazo
Well said. It's really not a corporation's responsibiltiy to be anything but a money making machine, what individuals that profit from the machine do is up to them. The market will dictate.Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
Political pressures should legally reduce human exploitation. A corporation should act legally of course, but ethically... The market will decide if it supports unethical behaviour by reducing demand of their product.
Why don't you start the ball rolling? My first suggestion to you would be to get rid of your computer because you can be sure there are components from China or some other country involved in human rights violations in it. You might want to sell any vehicles you own as well, get rid of a lot of your clothes, TVs, appliances, etc. Become a hermit. That will surely show China who's boss and force them to change their evil ways.Originally posted by: RightIsWrong
Originally posted by: Kenazo
Originally posted by: her209
Even if it means "human exploitation"?Originally posted by: Kenazo
Well said. It's really not a corporation's responsibiltiy to be anything but a money making machine, what individuals that profit from the machine do is up to them. The market will dictate.Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Micosoft is in the business of making money, not political statements.
Political pressures should legally reduce human exploitation. A corporation should act legally of course, but ethically... The market will decide if it supports unethical behaviour by reducing demand of their product.
When you hold a 92% market share and muscle just about everyone else out of the market....demand for your product isn't really a concern of yours when you are making a decision on whether something is ethical or not.