Costly Green Dam trial ends as funds dry up
- Source: Global Times
- [01:55 July 14 2010]
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Controversial program
The MIIT ordered on May 19, 2009, that all computers sold in the country as of July 1, 2009, had to come pre-installed with the "Green Dam - Youth Escort" software.
But authorities backpedaled on June 30, 2009, saying that pre-installation wasn't mandatory and would be used only for computers at schools and Internet cafes.
A number of Internet cafes complained that the software badly hurt their businesses, as it drove Web surfers away.
Controversy over the program mounted after its developers were accused of stealing parts of the code from CyberSitter, a US company, which filed a lawsuit for $2.2 billion early this year. Both Chinese developers denied the charges and the case is still pending.
Li Jiaming, director of the China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center, said the program has nothing to do with a sharp decline in pornographic and obscene content detected by his agency, as "the main function of Green Dam is to block content, not delete it."
Less obscene content has been reportedly available online in China since December, when China launched a nationwide crackdown on Internet porn, Li said.
Hu Yanping, director of Data Center of China Internet, an independent third-party platform for Internet information collection and data analysis, said he was happy that the Green Dam project is ending, speculating that "Promoting the use of Green Dam in such a simple and rude manner" could be a reason for its failure.
Hu suggest that Internet management should rely on the market, as well as well-targeted laws and regulations, instead of administrative orders.
Cai Haining, vice chairman of Information and the High-Tech Law Committee for the All China Lawyers Association, said, "Even if the project does not go as well as planned, it is still worth trying."
Admitting that the closure of the Beijing office does not imply any significant change in the country's Internet policy, Cai simply said, "The Green Dam project was part of a new attempt by the country's Internet watchdog to monitor and filter the unhealthy online information through technical means."
Song Shengxia, Chen Rui and Zhao Zhijie contributed to this story
