This post comes courtesy of our content partners at TechNode.
Beijing’s culture regulator issued an urgent notice on Monday that requires video streaming sites to self-censor all kid-targeted videos such as animations and cosplay dramas in a bid to wipe out inappropriate contents, Tencent Tech has reported.
In addition, the regulator also put a ban on the development and production of relevant games and derivative contents. Any game including non kid-friendly content would be suspended immediately.
Image credit: Baguafu
Children are falling easy prey to inappropriate content online. Such as when users put Frozen’s Elsa in their video to get it recognized for featuring that friendly lady, then having her become pregnant, receiving an injection, or other inappropriate behavior.
Western video platform YouTube has had its own share scandals related to its lack of policing around inappropriate content aimed at children, including references to sex, drugs, alcohol, and more. To solve the problem, YouTube has eliminated over 50 channels and 150 thousand videos from their site as of last November. Just as foreign video sites are making tighter regulations, the same kid-focused videos are proliferating on mainstream Chinese video sites like Youku, iQiyi, Tencent Video, and Sohu Video. In response to public concerns, these sites are responding quickly by deleting this content.
In an official statement made by Tencent Video, the firm says it has set up a dedicated team for the initiative. Over 121 accounts were suspended and 4,000 relevant keywords blocked.
It may be unbelievable to adults, but the influence of cartoons on children can be very significant and it may lead to tragedy if handled improperly. Pleasure Goat and Big Big Wolf (喜洋洋与灰太狼), one of China’s most popular homegrown animation titles, came under fire when two young boys were tied to a tree, placed on a bed of dried leaves and set fire to, by their peer and alleged friend, in an apparent simulation of a scene in the animation.
China has over 170 million minors and the kids in first-tier cities spend an average of 3.5 hours on the internet.
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