Rumors are flying all over the place about China video giant Tudou.com (it means potato in Chinese) being shut down, because it was suspected there was porn on the site. That comes as a huge surprise because when the new video laws went into effect about a month back, no one wouldha thunk that they'd actually be enforced!

Numerous Chinese sources have kicked out reports on this, and some reports have been deleted just as fast. Sohu and Wangtam both wrote about it, and I've captured the posts for posterity over on my blog, just in case the "delete fever" spreads any further. Consider it my best Global Voices impression...

Whatever the case, the best English coverage I've seen of the story to date has been on Marbridge:

Sources say that the direct cause of the breakdown between Tudou and CCTV.com is the Shutdown Order Regarding Punishment of Tudou for Illegal Online Video Broadcasting issued by the State Administration of Radio Film and Television (SARFT) to Shanghai broadcasting authorities on February 24.

The order states that Tudou is suspected of transmitting pornographic and other clearly proscribed content, and of continuing to be lax in its monitoring of content following the promulgation of SARFT's new regulations on online broadcasting. Tudou was ordered to shut down for an unlimited duration to reorganize its content. On February 26, word of the order, which had circulated throughout all levels of the broadcasting authorities, reached CCTV. An inside source revealed that Wang Wenbin, head of CCTV.com, saw the letter on that day--one day before the CCTV.com, MySpace China, and Tudou press conference. The next day Tudou CEO Wang Wei's speech was dropped from the press conference, and media at the press conference were told not to report this.

That said, Tudou is still online as I write this, with no signs of going down yet. So maybe it's more scare tactics from SARFT? Maybe it's a second warning? We'll have to wait and see...

Personally, I really hope that Tudou can push through this, as it offers a quality service for China like many of the other video-sharing sites. Tudou was one of the Web 2.0 pioneers in the Middle Kingdom, and personally I'd like to see the Government hold such Web sites up as a source of national Net pride, like Baidu or Alibaba.

But instead, the Government censors seem to be in the business of holding them back, because keeping the Chinese Internet titty-free is apparently worth the effort.

I assure you folks, that's just a bad decision no matter what way you look at it.

 

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