Promulgated by the Cyberspace Administration of China on May 2, 2017
Effective: June 1, 2017
Article 1 — These Provisions are formulated in accordance with the Cybersecurity Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Provisions on the Administration of Internet Information Services, and other laws and administrative regulations, for the purpose of strengthening the governance of Internet information content and regulating the activities of Internet news information services.
Article 2 — Those who engage in Internet news information services within the territory of the People’s Republic of China shall comply with these Provisions.
“Internet news information services” as used in these Provisions includes the provision of Internet news information collection, editing, publishing, and reposting services, as well as the provision of Internet news information dissemination platform services.
Article 3 — Those who provide Internet news information services shall obtain an Internet news information service permit. They shall not engage in Internet news information services beyond the scope of the permit.
Article 4 — To apply for an Internet news information service permit, the following conditions shall be met:
(1) Being a legal person legally established within the territory of the People’s Republic of China with its main entity, legal representative, and equity structure compliant with relevant State provisions;
(2) Having an editor-in-chief who is a Chinese citizen and other full-time news editors, content reviewers, and technical support personnel suitable for the needs of the services;
(3) Having a sound Internet news information service management system;
(4) Having sound information security management systems and technical safeguard measures;
(5) Having the venues, facilities, and funds suitable for the needs of the services.
Where an application is made to provide Internet news information collection, editing, and publishing services, the applicant shall be a news entity (including its controlled entity) or a news and publicity department controlling entity; where an application is made for any other Internet news information services, approval from the competent authority shall also be obtained.
Article 5 — Those who provide Internet news information services by establishing an Internet station, application program, forum, blog, microblog, public account, instant messaging tool, webcast, or any other form shall obtain an Internet news information service permit. Internet news information services that are prohibited from foreign investment, Sino-foreign joint ventures, or Sino-foreign cooperative operations shall not be provided in any form of cooperation such as setting up institutions of foreign investors within the territory of China that directly or indirectly control or participate in the management of Internet news information services.
Article 6 — To apply for an Internet news information service permit, an application shall be submitted to the Cyberspace Administration of China or the cyberspace administration authority of the province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government. After preliminary examination by the accepting cyberspace administration authority, the application shall be submitted to the Cyberspace Administration of China for decision. The Cyberspace Administration of China shall make a decision within the statutory time limit.
Article 7 — Internet news information service providers shall establish a chief editor responsibility system. The chief editor shall be fully responsible for the content of Internet news information.
Article 8 — Internet news information service providers shall establish information content security management mechanisms such as a general content management system, establish and improve information release review, public information inspection, emergency response, and network reporting and acceptance systems, and have professionals and technical support suitable for the scale of the service.
Article 9 — Where an Internet news information service provider reposts news information, the reposted content shall be news information released by news entities such as central-level or provincial-level news entities as designated by the State, and the source of the news information, the original author, the original title, and the editor’s real name shall be indicated, so as to ensure the traceability of the source of the news information.
Article 10 — Internet news information service providers shall not publish or disseminate information falling under the following categories:
(1) Violating the basic principles set forth in the Constitution;
(2) Endangering national security, divulging state secrets, subverting state power, and undermining national unity;
(3) Damaging national honor and interests;
(4) Instigating ethnic hatred or discrimination and undermining ethnic unity;
(5) Undermining the state’s policies on religion, spreading cults, and promoting feudal superstitions;
(6) Spreading rumors, disrupting social order, and undermining social stability;
(7) Spreading obscenity, pornography, gambling, violence, terror, or abetting the commission of crimes;
(8) Insulting or defaming others and infringing upon the lawful rights and interests of others;
(9) Other content prohibited by laws and administrative regulations.
Article 11 — Internet news information service providers and their employees shall not make, duplicate, publish, or disseminate information containing content prohibited by Article 10 of these Provisions through such means as fabricating facts, distorting the truth, or improperly editing news information.
Article 12 — Internet news information service providers shall set up a convenient reporting portal, promptly accept and handle public complaints and reports, and give feedback on the acceptance and handling results.
Article 13 — Where an Internet news information service provider provides Internet news information dissemination platform services, it shall sign a service agreement with the users who are stationed on its platform, specifying the rights and obligations of both parties in terms of platform user management and content security management.
Where a user’s account, number of followers, network link, or any other information is used to engage in advertising, the Internet news information service provider shall clearly indicate “advertisement” to the users.
Article 14 — Where an Internet news information service provider provides Internet news information dissemination platform services, it shall implement real identity information authentication for users who apply to register accounts. Where users do not provide real identity information, the Internet news information service provider shall not provide them with relevant services.
Internet news information service providers shall manage the news information released by users on the dissemination platform by reviewing in advance, and setting up blacklists and whitelists.
Article 15 — Where an Internet news information service provider provides Internet news information dissemination platform services, it shall, when discovering information or activities prohibited by laws and regulations, take measures such as warning, restricting functions, suspending updates, or closing accounts in accordance with law, keep records, and report to the relevant authorities.
Article 16 — Where an Internet news information service provider provides Internet news information dissemination platform services, it shall keep relevant records of the platform’s users’ usage of the platform services in accordance with law. The records include: user log information, information released by users, the time of user login and logout, the Internet address or domain name, and other relevant information.
The records shall be kept for no less than six months and shall be provided to the relevant State authorities when they make inquiries in accordance with law.
Article 17 — The Cyberspace Administration of China and local cyberspace administration authorities shall, in accordance with their duties, supervise, inspect, and guide the activities of Internet news information services. Where problems are found during supervision and inspection, they shall put forward handling opinions in a timely manner.
Article 18 — Internet news information service providers shall consciously accept social supervision. Internet news information service providers shall set up a social complaint reporting platform and develop an unimpeded complaint reporting channel.
Article 19 — Where Internet news information service providers violate these Provisions, the cyberspace administration authority shall, within the scope of its duties, give a warning, order correction, or impose a fine in accordance with the Cybersecurity Law of the People’s Republic of China and the Provisions on the Administration of Internet Information Services; where the case constitutes a crime, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with law.
Article 20 — These Provisions shall be interpreted by the Cyberspace Administration of China.
Article 21 — These Provisions shall enter into force on June 1, 2017.
Disclaimer: This English translation is provided for informational and reference purposes only. It is not an official translation and has no legal effect. While we strive for accuracy, this translation may contain errors or omissions. For any legal matters or official purposes, please consult the original Chinese text or seek professional legal advice. Dan Young Business Consultancy assumes no liability for any reliance placed on this translation.
