BEIJING, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities on Friday published a regulation on live streaming, ordering providers and releasers to obtain qualifications and act according to the rules.
For online live streaming of news, service providers are obliged to censor content before releasing it, said the regulation from the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC).
Service providers should be well-staffed and have the technical ability to stop live streams immediately, according to the regulation, which takes effect on Dec. 1, 2016.
Online live streaming has grown rapidly, but some platforms have been found to disseminate pornography, violence, rumors and fraud, counter to socialist core values and adversely affecting young people, a CAC official said.
Some platforms stream live news without proper qualifications, thus disturbing the orderly dissemination of information, the official added.
China now has more than 300 companies that provide online live streaming platforms, the official said.
Service providers should classify online live streams based on their content and number of users, and manage them accordingly, the regulation said.
It banned the use of live streams to undermine national security, destabilize society, disturb social order, infringe upon others' rights and interests, or disseminate obscene content.
Using online live streaming services to make, replicate, release and disseminate information banned by law and regulations is not allowed, it added.
It also stipulated that service providers should blacklist users who break the rules, and prohibit them from registering again.
"Online live streaming services are low-cost with low entry thresholds,so some online anchors perform dramatically, sometimes with pornographic implications, to compete with others," said Zhu Wei, professor of media law with Chinese University of Political Science and Law.
Many service providers left such misbehavior unchecked because they fear popular anchors will quit and move to competitors, Zhu said.
With a blacklisting system, they can be banned from all services, Zhu added.
