Weibo to Require Personal Details in March

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  • #8609
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster

    Oh man, here we go. It looks like the real name and ID requirement for Chinese social networks that people have been talking about are coming true.

    Starting in March, everyone will have to register their name and ID number with social networks like Weibo to retain their ability to post anything. You can still read without registering but your access could be read-only from that point on. More information here (in Chinese).

    I think the impact that this announcement will have is to be decided by how the Chinese internet responds to this announcement. What do you think will happen? Would you register your personal details to have access to Weibo?

    Some people are saying that you could post fraudulent information to maintain access but at the point that this becomes a requirement, I think I’m out of the Weibo game.

    What do you guys think?

    #16949
    Avatar photoDanielle
    Participant

    I would say I’m done with Weibo when this regulation kicks in. Another serious blow towards internet freedom – I refuse to support this kind of total media control.

    Didn’t something sort of similar to this happen with taobao recently?

    #16849
    Avatar photoDanielle
    Participant

    I would say I’m done with Weibo when this regulation kicks in. Another serious blow towards internet freedom – I refuse to support this kind of total media control.

    Didn’t something sort of similar to this happen with taobao recently?

    #16950
    Avatar photoJustin
    Participant

    I was reading about this on the Shanghaiist this morning. Here’s the first comment on the article.

    Quote:
    I have tried registering my real name on my Weibo, but it rejects my name because it is English, assuming the only names people have in the world are Chinese. I guess I’ll be forced to come up with a fake Chinese name for myself. Thanks, real name registration policy, for forcing me to register a fake name

    Maybe this will be some bullshit security feature that anyone can get around by putting in a random Chinese name, or maybe not. I don’t see myself registering my name just to use weibo, but if a made up Chinese name will suffice, I’ll probably stick around.

    #16850
    Avatar photoJustin
    Participant

    I was reading about this on the Shanghaiist this morning. Here’s the first comment on the article.

    Quote:
    I have tried registering my real name on my Weibo, but it rejects my name because it is English, assuming the only names people have in the world are Chinese. I guess I’ll be forced to come up with a fake Chinese name for myself. Thanks, real name registration policy, for forcing me to register a fake name

    Maybe this will be some bullshit security feature that anyone can get around by putting in a random Chinese name, or maybe not. I don’t see myself registering my name just to use weibo, but if a made up Chinese name will suffice, I’ll probably stick around.

    #16951
    Avatar photoBrendan
    Moderator

    Not that I was particularly keen on Weibo in the first place, but I’m really interested to see how this plays out. Tencent are set on a path of massive investment in Chengdu to the tune of 550 million RMB, as part of a deal to expand into the South’s High Tech Zone. It’s probably a safe bet that will continue, part of the move is to set up a research base for the company, but it does beg the question just how far will government go when such a decision affects a commercial enterprise.

    I haven’t seen or heard too much chatter about the requirement, which leads me to suspect that for the most part it will just fizzle to an all too familiar silence.

    Any ideas on future alternatives, if there are in fact any?

    #16851
    Avatar photoBrendan
    Moderator

    Not that I was particularly keen on Weibo in the first place, but I’m really interested to see how this plays out. Tencent are set on a path of massive investment in Chengdu to the tune of 550 million RMB, as part of a deal to expand into the South’s High Tech Zone. It’s probably a safe bet that will continue, part of the move is to set up a research base for the company, but it does beg the question just how far will government go when such a decision affects a commercial enterprise.

    I haven’t seen or heard too much chatter about the requirement, which leads me to suspect that for the most part it will just fizzle to an all too familiar silence.

    Any ideas on future alternatives, if there are in fact any?

    #16955
    Avatar photoElias
    Participant

    get your weibo protest tweets up soon!

    #16855
    Avatar photoElias
    Participant

    get your weibo protest tweets up soon!

    #16957
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster
    Quote:
    get your weibo protest tweets up soon!

    Last one back on Twitter is a thousand year old egg!

    #16857
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster
    Quote:
    get your weibo protest tweets up soon!

    Last one back on Twitter is a thousand year old egg!

    #16958
    Avatar photoVic
    Participant

    most of the chinese would’t fight for their own rights.

    what a shame!

    #16858
    Avatar photoVic
    Participant

    most of the chinese would’t fight for their own rights.

    what a shame!

    #16962
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster
    Quote:
    most of the chinese would’t fight for their own rights.

    what a shame!

    I don’t think they consider them rights, really. Only in contrast to the Western world, which is a comparison that the leadership here really does not want to allow people to make. Compared to a few decades ago, China is a bastion of personal freedoms in 2012. I think this is the perspective that most Chinese people approach issues like this with.

    #16862
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster
    Quote:
    most of the chinese would’t fight for their own rights.

    what a shame!

    I don’t think they consider them rights, really. Only in contrast to the Western world, which is a comparison that the leadership here really does not want to allow people to make. Compared to a few decades ago, China is a bastion of personal freedoms in 2012. I think this is the perspective that most Chinese people approach issues like this with.

    #16966
    Avatar photolinka999
    Participant

    Does anybody really think if they do so, then we Chinese can’t find out another way to do it?

    When people already find out good part of change information, they will not stop it easily.

    Let’s say even about youtube, for those people who want to see it they still can find out way to see it.

    #16866
    Avatar photolinka999
    Participant

    Does anybody really think if they do so, then we Chinese can’t find out another way to do it?

    When people already find out good part of change information, they will not stop it easily.

    Let’s say even about youtube, for those people who want to see it they still can find out way to see it.

    #16990
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster
    Quote:
    Does anybody really think if they do so, then we Chinese can’t find out another way to do it?

    When people already find out good part of change information, they will not stop it easily.

    Let’s say even about youtube, for those people who want to see it they still can find out way to see it.

    Right, that is true. The whole reason why people use Weibo though is because Twitter was blocked in China. Perhaps Twitter wouldn’t have been successful in China since “they don’t understand the Chinese market” but Weibo is one in a series of clones (like Facebook/Renren, Youtube/Youku, etc). 99% of Chinese people don’t use Facebook/Youtube/Twitter for the simple reason that they’re blocked and it’s a hassle. Some people will jump through hoops to access blocked services in China, but they are a tiny minority.

    #16890
    Avatar photoCharlie
    Keymaster
    Quote:
    Does anybody really think if they do so, then we Chinese can’t find out another way to do it?

    When people already find out good part of change information, they will not stop it easily.

    Let’s say even about youtube, for those people who want to see it they still can find out way to see it.

    Right, that is true. The whole reason why people use Weibo though is because Twitter was blocked in China. Perhaps Twitter wouldn’t have been successful in China since “they don’t understand the Chinese market” but Weibo is one in a series of clones (like Facebook/Renren, Youtube/Youku, etc). 99% of Chinese people don’t use Facebook/Youtube/Twitter for the simple reason that they’re blocked and it’s a hassle. Some people will jump through hoops to access blocked services in China, but they are a tiny minority.

    #16991
    Avatar photolinka999
    Participant

    99% of Chinese people don’t use Facebook/Youtube/Twitter for there have another simple reason they don’t speak English.

    If Chinese speaks English, then I believe lot of things will change.

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