100,000 Users Of Chinese Microblog Sina Weibo Punished For Violating 'Censorship Guidelines'

We've written a number of times of the various ways in which China tries to police its online world. These include punishing individuals, as well as imposing general rules that apply to everybody. Until now, it's been hard to tell to what extent the latter were just saber-rattling. Now we know, thanks to a new post on the Global Voices site: 

On Techdirt.

Chinese Microblog Service Introduces Five-Strike Program To Block 'Rumors' And 'Evil Teachings'

In a country where the mainstream media is tightly controlled, Chinese microblogs have provided an invaluable way for millions of people to find and share unofficial information. That's obviously problematic for the Chinese authorities, who have been gradually clamping down on what they term "rumors". 

On Techdirt.

The Bookless Author

Somebody looking at the bigger picture:

The past few days I have been in talks with Sina's VIP Book Channel. We will sign a contract on 11 November so that henceforth I will no longer put out books in print. I will write exclusively online, giving my readers material on Sina VIP. Qimen Dunjia will be my last print novel.

Many readers may be asking themselves: why?

The reason is very simple: environmental protection. Since I began writing horror novels in 1999 I have published 14 books [list of titles omitted]. How much paper was used to market these books across the country? How many forests were chopped down? The unlimited space online wastes neither paper nor ink—it doesn't consume resources. Sina's VIP Books has opened up a new model for reading: authors get income, the environment is preserved, and the audience can read things easily and cheaply. At the same time it is a blow to piracy—it accomplishes several things at one stroke.