Citing eroding standards of taste, China says all live-streaming providers must obtain licences
Applicants must be state-owned or state-controlled and have 10 million yuan in registered capital, watchdog says, as it cracks down on content deemed vulgar or erotic
China’s press and entertainment watchdog has demanded content providers in the thriving online live-streaming sector obtain a licence to operate, a move that some observers say could stifle the services.
The order came as a senior regulatory official lashed out at the platforms, accusing them of broadcasting live “vulgar and even erotic content”.
Ren Xianliang, deputy director of the State Administration of Press and Publication, Radio, Film and Television, said on Friday that the “vulgar” content on the services “deviated from the core values of socialism, diluted mainstream ideology and crossed the line of a civilised online environment”, according to a statement on the administration’s website.
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Ren said that if standards were allowed to continue to slide, the services would seriously contaminate cyberspace and have a negative influence on internet users’ outlook on life, values and the world.
The criticism echoed the administration’s demands last month that websites step up monitoring of live streaming and onscreen comments.
Under the administration’s new order, live-streaming platforms must apply for a “ network broadcasting licence” to do live broadcasts.
A similar directive was issued for internet television two years ago.