Chinese e-commerce platforms block Houston Rockets’ merchandise after backlash over GM’s tweet supporting Hong Kong protests
- CCTV5, one of China’s most popular state-own sports channels, said it would suspend airing of NBA games
China’s leading e-commerce platforms, including Alibaba’s Taobao, JD.com and Pinduoduo, have blocked products related to US basketball team the Houston Rockets, whose general manager Daryl Morey on Friday posted a now-deleted tweet that indicated support for the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
Online searches for Houston Rockets merchandise on the platforms turned up a message saying “items not found”.
Alibaba did not immediately respond to several requests for comment. A spokeswoman from Pinduoduo declined to comment on the issue. A spokesman from JD.com said the company had no comment on the issue.
It is not the first time Chinese e-commerce sites have blocked items due to the Hong Kong protests triggered by the city government's now-abandoned extradition bill.
A search by the Post on Tuesday showed those items were still not available on Taobao’s Hong Kong site.