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| China increases pressure on tech companies |
The Chinese market regulator has proposed new rules to strengthen control over online advertising, including a requirement that advertising does not interfere with normal Internet use or mislead users.
Chinese tech giants are feeling the pressure of the economic downturn. This has put financial pressure on an industry grappling with a number of new regulations this year.
Chinese authorities have tightened supervision over a number of industries this year, with an emphasis on technology.
Search giant Baidu and gaming giant Tencent warned in their latest quarterly results that the near-term outlook for ad sales looked weak due to the impact of the epidemic and Chinese regulatory campaigns.
Tencent's quarterly revenue growth rate for social media and video games was the slowest since the company went public in 2004.
The search engine company Baidu also reported a slowdown in ads. At the same time, e-commerce giant Alibaba has lowered its growth forecast for this fiscal year.
The state market monitoring agency said that online advertising should meet the requirements of building a socialist spiritual civilization and promoting the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation.
The proposed rules require platform operators to set up a system for recording and reviewing advertisers and ads, and for monitoring and filtering the content of ads displayed and posted using their services.
The proposed rules also require a ban on advertising of minors in order to promote medical treatments, cosmetics and online games that do not benefit the physical and mental health of minors.
The regulator said on its website that the proposed new rules could be publicly commented on before December 25.
In September, China's cyberspace regulator released a draft rule on how companies use algorithmic recommendations, in line with previous rules on data use and unfair competition.
Previously, Chinese riding giant Didi Chuxing was investigated days after it was registered in the US for allegedly violating privacy. At the same time, e-commerce company Alibaba was fined $2.8 billion for its anti-competitive behavior.
China publishes draft rules for online advertising
The gaming and messaging giant Tencent has announced that all of its new apps and updates must have government approval.
After discovering violations of nine of its apps since the beginning of this year, the company has taken action. This has led to the need to adopt temporary administrative measures.
The Company must submit any new application or update for review by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology before downloading or updating.
After passing the examination, according to CCTV, it can be issued to users as usual, the ministry said. Although Tencent announced to AFP, it meets the requirements.
The company is constantly working to improve the user protection features of its applications. "We also work regularly with relevant government agencies to ensure compliance," she said. Our app is still working and available for download.