China: Online protest against CNNIC

A group of webmasters puts up a protest website called FuckCNNIC to protest against the recent policy that bans individuals from registering CN domain.

Last week, the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), the CN domain name supervision body, announced that starting from 21:00 on December 14, 2009, it would close down domain name registrations for individuals who are not purchasing domains on behalf of companies or organizations:

In order to further enhance the authenticity, accuracy, and integrality of the domain name registration information, now notify as following:

1. Domain name applicants need to submit the formal paper based application material when making the online application to the registrar. The application material includes the original application form with business seal, company business license (photocopy), and registrant ID (photocopy).

2. Registrar should carefully review the application material. When application is deemed qualified, registrar need to submit the application material via fax or E-mail to CNNIC, and withhold the original application material.

3. From the day of the submission of online application, if CNNIC does not receive the formal paper based application material within 5 days or the application material auditing is not qualified, the domain name to be applied will be deleted.

4. The above regulations will be executed since 9:00AM (Beijing Time), Dec 14th, 2009.

If you have any question, free to contact us at 86-10-58813000 or email to service@cnnic.cn.

CNNIC
Dec 11th, 2009

Netizens suspected that the center was pressured by the Propaganda Department, as the party and government mouthpiece, CCTV had criticized domain name registration service providers and agencies for false, inaccurate or incomplete information in the registration process.

CNNIC then authorized three companies, including Zhengzhou Dahuang Network Development Company, Beijing Xinnet Digital Information Technology Company, and Beijing Blinux Network Technology Company, for CN domain registration. Moreover, it required that all users who want to apply for domain names to provide written application materials, including business license or organization certificate, to domain name registration service providers (the above companies) while submitting applications online.

The protest website points out that CNNIC has sacrificed individual netizens’ right for owning CN top domain and openly violated the code of conduct among domain name registration service providers. It urges netizens to participate in the joint signature campaign and call the CNNIC complaint hotline 86-10-58813000. Below is the protest sticker:

1 comment

Join the conversation

Authors, please log in »

Guidelines

  • All comments are reviewed by a moderator. Do not submit your comment more than once or it may be identified as spam.
  • Please treat others with respect. Comments containing hate speech, obscenity, and personal attacks will not be approved.