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Subscribe to RSSThanks to the East Coast blizzard of 2010, it took me five days to travel back to Beijing from my vacation. So there was much joy and relief at landing today.
But it was all short-lived after being greeted by (1) gale force winds and temperatures below zero and (2) the news that Skype may soon be unavailable in China.
The People’s Daily, a Chinese-language newspaper run by the Chinese Communist Party, reported today that services providing voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) would be illegal unless they’re provided by telecom carriers China Unicom and China Telecom.
Technically, Skype is illegal in China, according to the Ministry of Information and Industry, which is responsible for granting VoIP licenses.
What’s more, China -- which counts 450 million Internet users – is the largest market for internet phone calls, which cost far less than landline calls. That also means unlicensed providers like Skype are cutting into a lucrative market for the state telecoms.
In October 2009, the top Chinese VoIP – UUCall, with 30 million registered users – was suspended by a provincial telecoms bureau. The company reopened for business last February by relocating its domain name in Hong Kong.
On Sina.com’s microblog, many users criticized the decision by the Ministry of Information and Industry. “The Ministry of Information and Industry must be desperately poor,” observed a Chinese woman who goes by the name Amanda114.
If Skype is blocked (and it's not clear when that would happen), it would join a club of illustrious Western Internet companies that includes Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
With additional research by Zhu Tong
Leave a Comment:
We use Skype to communicate with our customers and manufacturers in China. If Skype is discontinued, we would have to go back to email communications. I think this would be a step backwards for China. We'll see what happens...
I agree with you completely, but we have no choice
I live in China now and SKYPE works fine. I could just use my VPN like I do for YouTube, Twitter. com, etc. This crap of trying to shut down everything is getting old. Maybe some of the Chinese submarines need to start vanishing from under the water quietly and the US Embassy's visa office could start being "closed" 4.5 days per week due to anti-terror concerns and a lack of budget to staff AMERICAN personnel that could speak English. Maybe some of the Wal-Mart bound ships from China could have some unfortunate mishaps at sea and just vanish. China cannot be trusted. Wake up, smell the coffee, and get a clue. SHUT CHINA DOWN ASAP before it gets to the point where we need to start tossing around nukes. This SKYPE crap is not just about lost revenue for VOIP. It is about censorship and supression just like HOMELAND SECURITY is in the USA.
Certainly the world needs to respond to the censorship and oppression in China. Business as usual has not worked as an approach to "engage" the Chinese. China appears to be becoming more repressive not less. It seems the powers that be in China believe the Chinese people and the world can be bullied into accepting their version of the status quo. China policy worldwide needs a big RE-THINK.
@USMP: So your answer to China's internet policy is to quietly sink chinese naval and commercial vessels? And this accomplishes what exactly? Whether you like it or not, chinese internal policies are not your business. And stop lying about living in China- you don't.
Isn't America doing the same thing when it comes to, and I quote Pete-1916000 " people and the world can be bullied into accepting their version of the status quo." We are every where trying to impose out values and way of life on every one else.
If you're using a VPN in China, be careful. You may find yourself woken late at night by the police, or even worse, the Red Guard.
Such things are trackable, and most certainly illegal.
^lolredgaurd
Do you think this kind of advertising works? I will never buy any products from your company because of the scummy way you advertise.
This is how China is headed straight to the top. When they see competition, they make it illegal or employ some other sleazy tactic to force it out. It makes me sick that so many people don't care.
I'm with you, JW... Sounds like the old Wal-Mart slash and burn here in the U.S.
Makes you sick JW? People don't care. It looks as if a lot of people do care, just that the government can and does do what ever it wants and what ever it thinks is in it's best interest. Exactly what the American government has been doing. Just diffrent tactics.
All I see every day is a full parking lot at the local walmarts and people buying chinese goods because they are cheaper. Never mind the price of having that "deal". And then I see China propping up it's state run businesses and forcing out all competition through any number of means. They are nothing more than a blood sucking leech on the world economy and for the few that do care about what they are doing, there are throngs that don't. All we care about here is how good of a deal we're getting and yes, that makes me sick. There are plenty of things about my own government I don't like either, but I know how to spot the bigger evil.
You mean like how here in the US, they banned online gambling, and then got the credit to not cover certain companies who were behind it, regardless what they say the charge is for. And who online gambling hurt, why the states who all run their own lotteries.
I don't know much about that since I don't gamble. I will say, however, that I get irritated when I walk into a store to get some gas and I have to wait behind a line of rednecks buying hundreds of dollars worth of scratch off lottery tickets.
Does no one else find it ironic that in a story about censorship, there are multiple deleted posts? It seems China is not the only country who's higher powers will deem whether or not your opinions are worthy of public viewing.
Its time to wake up people. We are censored everywhere. China is just more blatant about it.
Not sure, but I think the deleted posts are more about Spam than censorship. Big difference, I'm sure you'll agree.
you might be right, had not considered the spam angle......
Why do we keep doing business with a country where human rights don't exist?
I am tired of our double-standard. We avoid doing business with countries like Cuba because of human rights issues there, yet we do business with China.
If President Obama wants to do something good for our country, he should discourage trade with China. If he does that, I would probably re-elect him.
This can be accomplished easily:
and
How many of those American companies are producing in emerging markets because they sell in those markets? They do it to provide shareholder equity for the stakeholders of their business, not the government. Do not lose sight of the almight dollar driving sourcing solutions. Do you think government can mandate shareholder equity through high import taxes? You may want to revisit your own investment portfolio and determine how much is US-based only businesses.
If you want the jobs to return to the US, you must prepare yourself to pay more for the goods you wish to consume. The jam packed Wal-Mart parking lots provide evidence the general American consumer is unwilling to pay a premium for "Made in America."
How many Western World consumers do you believe prioritize origin of the goods they buy over the price they pay? Until there is a real need or drive by Western World consumers to deviate from price sensitive purchases, you can expect the lowest price will continue to win.
Find a way to make it cheaper in the US than in China (or Thailand, or Malaysia, or Mexico, etc) and the Wal-Mart customers will shift their consumer habits accordingly. After all, was not Wal-Mart's old slogan once "Made in America?"
So for some cheap junk, you are willing to give up Billion in US trade? How many airplanes does China have on order today with Boeing, or equipment from Caterpillar, or products from Apple,which are all made there too.
All is fair in a trade war. China is starting one.
I use Skype to communicate with my girlfriend back in China. I hope they don't shut it down. I live in China for two years (not currently) and I've always tried my best to be balanced when it comes to the Chinese govt. and its policies. However, if they really do cut off Skype, it would actually influence my decision to not move back there and try to persuade my g/f to mover over here with me.
Like someone posted above, we'll have to see what happens.
agreed 100+% !
This should not really be a surprise. The Chinese government wants to control everything there and Skype is only the latest example. The more we kowtow to this Chinese Communist/Managed Capitalist government, the weaker we in the West become. Someone needs to take a hard stand against these guys and start some quid-pro quo tactics to remind them that they don't run the world (not yet anyway). I just couldn't imagine when we were fighting against these bastards in the 1970's they we would be so dependent on them in this day and age. Disgraceful! At least the Soviets had the gumption to drop the ideology and just go for a mafia managed economy.
Great! Now we are all going to have to go back to the dixie cup and string method. Oh China......the lengths you go to get me to sing "Proud to be an American" on the internet. We all know it is because some really really old kung fu master has been charged with decision making and thinks a skype is either a crude weapon or something children do with flashlights and a pillow case on camping trips. Ie; Skype Hunting.
Going back 10 maybe 15 years ago, there was a company that did streaming TV, it was increadible, good clear pictures and sound, and hundreds or station to pick from all over the world. When big sports got word of this, they had it shut down, because they had way of controllin blackout for local markets. If I recall it was called frogtv or something like that.
Nothing wrong with that, its good for China and its people, everyone is happy, business as usual!
People will just shift to IMQQ. It's the most popular IM software among the younger generation in China. It supports all of the features of skype and is also available in english. I doubt the Chinese government would ban something that is ubiquitous as phone numbers among the younger generation. So basically businesses just have to shift to IMQQ.