BEIJING - China called on domestic websites to sign a voluntary pact governing online video and audio content, urging them to exercise self-censorship to ensure a "healthy and orderly" cyberspace.
The government seeks to exert greater control over China's rapidly growing Internet sector and prevent content deemed harmful or subversive from getting into the public domain.
Eight "central" websites signed the pact Friday, agreeing to eradicate pornography and violence, which have "seriously polluted the online environment and affected the growth of young people," the national broadcast watchdog said. Signatories so far include the sites of the official news agency Xinhua, Communist Party mouthpiece the People's Daily and other state media organizations.
"The signatories should actively disseminate healthy, beneficial audio-visual programs meeting socialist moral norms," reads the pact drafted by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television. "Decadent, backward thoughts and culture must be boycotted by all."
The pact also targets content related to gambling and "horror."
The pact asks websites to use Net.tv.cn, an online database that was set up by the national broadcast watchdog and includes a pool of recommended "excellent" audio-visual programs and a list of illegal content to be avoided.
Under the pact, websites also are obliged to delete improper content uploaded by Internet users and protect intellectual property rights.
The Ministry of Information Industry unveiled new rules on online video and audio content late in 2007, banning violent, pornographic and fake material. The rules dictate that websites offering broadcast or streaming services should be run by state-invested bodies. Sites with clean records would be able to reapply for independent operating licenses.
