Is Real-Name Registration Necessary for Micro-Blogs?

Is Real-Name Registration Necessary for Micro-Blogs?

LI SHIGONG

On December 16, 2011, multiple government organizations in Beijing issued a regulation to strengthen the management of twitter-like micro-blogging.The new regulation requires Internet companies registered in the city and offering microblogging services to have their users register using their real names and personal information. Users’ identity information must be validated before they begin blogging. While real names are required for the registration,netizens can use customized usernames when posting comments.

The regulation will have a huge impact on China’s 500 million Internet users and those who participate in major micro-blogging sites like Sina, Sohu and Netease.

Beijing is China’s first city to demand real-name registration, a move that has sparked controversy.

Supporters believe the regulation will help foster a healthier Internet culture free of rumors and fear mongering, protect Internet users’ rights and prevent online personas from in fl uencing Internet conversations.

Opponents argue this practice will limit free speech and cause losses to micro-blog operators because of diminishing numbers of users. Some people even think this new regulation is a big blow to Internet micro-blogs. How far this regulation can go is still unclear.

In with the real names

An Chuanxiang (www.xinhuanet.com): By the end of November 2011, China’s microblog accounts had reached 320 million. With its rapid development, micro-blogging is playing an increasingly important role in disseminating information. These online platforms, however, have been plagued by people spreading rumors and hurting the public’s rights and interests. Angry about these problems, Internet operators and users have called for stronger regulations on micro-blogging.Beijing’s new regulation is undoubtedly a direct response to these calls.

The announcement of the new regulation has triggered a massive debate. It’s necessary for us to clarify the supporters and opposition to this regulation.

Real name registration demands that every micro-blog user account corresponds to a real ID, which means every user will now be responsible for what they write on their microblogs. Who then will feel worried about the“responsible practices?”

In my opinion, it is those who are spreading fraudulent information and rumors online and want to make troubles and disputes in this way, those who want to make money by trading “dummy” followers and those who are spreading violence and pornographic information online and cheating Internet users. Real name registration will reduce online fraudulence and rumors and make the Internet environment more clear and reliable.

For those who mean to conduct normal communication through micro-blogs, the new regulation is good news.

Public credibility is the media’s life. If micro-blogs are glutted with rumors and fraudulent information, the public will gradually lose confidence and interest in them.The adoption of real name registration will strengthen micro-blogs’ authenticity as new media. This is supposed to be what most micro-bloggers hope to see.

Meanwhile, it is important to protect users’ personal information. Here, it’s important for micro-blog operators to be responsible for users’ information, so that users will feel willing to register with their real names.

Beijing’s new regulation is a tangible step forward in promoting micro-blogs’ development. Only joint efforts by micro-bloggers,micro-blog operators and management agencies can help China’s Internet industry go along the healthy, credible and sound way.

Bi Yantao (Global Times): In the long run, real name registration will help to clean web space; in the short run, this new regulation should go together with an improving microblog operation environment. In South Korea, because of several accidents of personal information leakage, the real name registration system will be given up. But the problem here is actually the loopholes in the operation, and thus it’s unfair to totally blame the real name registration system itself.

The implementation of real name registration depends on both domestic and international operation environments.

Privacy protection is one of the excuses used to resist real name registration, but I don’t think the thing is so simple. Globally speaking, in the virtual space, the confrontation among governments, and the rivalry among non-governmental organizations is getting fi ercer.

Domestically speaking, when information begins to swell, it tends to be rubbish.China has a huge amount of Internet users, so it’s the government, enterprises and netizens’common responsibility to block rubbish information and online fraud.

In a Web environment full of rumors, everyone is likely to be the next victim, and how to filter the massive amount of information will become a heavy burden for bloggers. In this sense, real name registration is a necessary policy.

Even if real name registration is required,those free-spoken bloggers will not retreat, and thus we don’t need to worry about the loss of these online critics. Meanwhile, while pushing forward real name registration, the government should also further improve information transparency, because otherwise, it’s hard to win full trust from micro-blog users.

Real name registration has actually long been adopted on the Internet by social network platforms, e-business websites and e-banks. So it is not an unacceptable practice,but instead is a big trend. The key now is how to improve the online environment for real name registration. The government, microblog operators and micro-bloggers should all strengthen the sense of responsibility to protect netizens’ privacy.

He Bing (Southern Weekend): The real name registration for micro-blogs will not interfere with people’s speech freedom. Before Beijing’s new regulation comes on, anyone who wants to open a micro-blog account only needs to open a new email account. As a result, you would never even know who is humiliating you on the Internet, unless you adopt investigation means.

The regulation said micro-blog users can use customized usernames when posting comments, which means it will not interfere with people’s speech freedom. The biggest merit of the real name registration regulation is that it will encourage people to bravely criticize and put forward suggestions with their real identities. This will undoubtedly help to improve the current connection between the government and the ordinary micro-bloggers.

The question now is how to protect micro-bloggers’ personal information, how to prevent micro-blogging service providers and authorities from abusing micro-bloggers’personal information. The real name registration policy is testing micro-blog users and the government as well.

Hu Xijin (www.itxinwen.com): This is by no means what the whole society expect to see that one day, no one dares to speak freely on micro-blogs. If this happens, the negative impact it brings will be worse than the troubles stemming from the current messy micro-blog environment. I don’t think the government means to shut people’s mouths by adopting the real name registration practice. We’ve already had many real name online critics. It is not normal that people express opinions by remaining anonymous.It’s not real democracy but kind of deformed democracy.

Hu Yihua(www.itxinwen.com): The adoption of real name registration will greatly increase the credibility of information on micro-blogs.In such a trustworthy environment, people tend to set up interpersonal connections more easily.Meanwhile, from the legal perspective, it will better protect netizens’ rights and interests. Once netizens’ right of reputation is offended, they will have some places to turn to.

Impractical and invasive

Luo Zhiyuan (www.wenming.cn): As a supplement to traditional media, microblogs are playing a crucial role in China’s public affairs. Concerning the regulation,this is how I feel:

First of all, it’s necessary to update legislation on Internet management and supervision based on laws. Micro-blogging operators should also strengthen supervision on their own websites by fi ltering inappropriate content and screening users who publish false information.

Second, we need to improve netizens’ understanding of the impact their words have on other people.

Third, radical remarks on micro-blogs are usually written by disadvantaged groups who feel they have no other choice to have their problems solved and thus feel desperate. As for this issue, it’s better for the government to open more channels for people to voice their problems.

Sometimes we tend to go to extremes. It’s unwise to label micro-blogs as “dangerous” just because rumors manage to spread. The real name registration practice is unable to fundamentally tackle the problem. The most effective way is that the government encourages as many users as possible to register with real names, supplemented by strong supervision and tough punishment of online crimes.

Liu Xingliang (www.stcn.com): The real name registration will do more harm than good. The regulation will reduce online rumors and clean up the Web, but possibly at the price that this cleaner online domain is a more quiet place.

Moreover, micro-blog operators will suffer,but bigger losses will have to be taken by those companies specializing in micro-blog marketing. Micro-blogs will see fewer registrations and more netizens will become bystanders, refraining from commenting on social issues out of a fear of being reprimanded.

Hao Jinsong (www.iceo.com.cn): Microblogs are nothing but a social communication platform. People go to micro-blogs to write,just like they go to coffee shops and teahouses to have a talk. Has anyone ever been demanded to register his or her real name before entering these places?

Bei Feng (www.tianya.cn): The regulation is impractical and may end up as nothing,unenforced and a ploy by of fi cials to get people to shut up. For example, the website Sina.com is not only facing Chinese netizens, but it also has users outside China. The problem is, in some countries, citizens do not have ID cards. Besides,users in these countries can not open the interface for identity veri fi cation. Therefore, this will be a big problem when implementing the real name registration regulation.