China Starts Shutting Down Video Hosting Sites

from the so-much-for-leniency dept

Back in January, China put in place rules that effectively banned any video hosting/sharing website that wasn't owned or controlled by the Chinese government. However, after the law went into practice, China didn't do anything -- and many assumed that the government had been convinced that shutting down such sites would harm the entrepreneurial environment it's been trying to foster in China. Then, of course, things went nuts in Tibet. China banned YouTube, and suddenly remembered the laws it had put in place. It's now announced that 25 video hosting sites need to be shut down and another 32 will be "punished." No description of the "punishment" is provided. In the meantime, this should be a reminder to those investors rushing to invest in Chinese startups: the government can change the landscape drastically with little warning.

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