In the first case of its kind in the region, a man has been fined 5,000 Hong Kong dollars (about US $640) for inserting a link to pornography in an Internet message board, according to the South China Morning Post.
A court in the Kwun Tong district of the city heard that Woo Tai-wai, 48, provided on a forum a hyperlinked message which, when clicked, enabled other forum users to access an overseas pornographic website.
Woo pleaded guilty to publishing eight obscene photographs in the first prosecution related to Internet porn under the city's obscene and indecent articles laws.
Internet Society Chairman Charles Mok Nai-kwong said the court case raised several concerns.
"In this case, the court has given a new direction to the public concerning the responsibility of Internet users," he told the Post.
Mok said he also believes the case could damage freedom of information on the Internet.
"This man posted a link on the Internet which now becomes an act that constitutes the breaking of law, and my question is whether a link is being regarded as the 'obscene article,'" he said.
Mok said popular search engines, including Yahoo and Google, carry links to porn sites.
"In cases where search engines list out all the links to pornographic websites, is it justifiable to ask whether these would have to undergo censorship, as they also provide these hyperlinks to obscene articles?" he asked.
