China has announced steep penalties for the distributors of unauthorised content in a bid to combat the high levels of music, film and computer game piracy in the country. New measures will force internet service providers in the country to reveal the identities of individuals suspected of distributing content illegally online, while authorities will be able to fine illegal distributors up to 10,000 yuan ($12,461).
Companies that create technologies that facilitate physical or online piracy could also be targeted under the new measures. These rules might be applied quite widely, sparking some fears that search engines like Baidu and Yahoo might find themselves being targeted.
The moves are part of the Chinese government's attempts to allay concerns from Western countries, and especially the US, that they are unable to control content piracy. They follow a number of other anti-piracy initiatives that have been introduced in the country, and no doubt respond to specific calls from the US for greater penalties for content pirates.
According to the South China Morning Post, Charles Martin of the American Chamber Of Commerce in China recently told a Beijing conference: "We see that there is more enforcement on the part of the Chinese government, but the problem is growing faster than enforcement efforts. What is missing is significant punishment or penalties for those violators".