On June 25, 2016, the Cyberspace Administration of China (Hereinafter referred to as the “ACA”) issued the
Administrative Provisions on Internet Information Search Services
(Hereinafter referred to as the “Provisions”), intended to regulate internet search engines.
Everyone knows that internet search engines offer the valuable service of organizing and presenting the expanse of information on the internet in a convenient and manageable format for the average internet surfer. However, in the face of the ever expanding level of information available on the internet, efforts at encouraging the legitimacy and veracity of information which can be obtained online seem almost futile.
No case demonstrates this more clearly than the tragic situation of Wei Zexi which took the Chinese internet by storm in recent months. Wei Zexi suffered from a rare cancer, and had spent a great deal of time and money searching for effective therapies. After trying several treatments with no success, Wei and his family performed a simple search on Chinese search engine giant BAIDU in hopes of finding potential treatments or well known hospitals which might be effective in the fight against his cancer. The top BAIDU result which came up for the search named a Beijing hospital listed as the number one hospital specialized in treating and curing Wei’s unique type of cancer. Little did Wei know that the “search result” was in reality a paid advertisement placed by the hospital itself.
Wei went through several rounds of treatment, and his family, hoping for his renewed health, spent a large amount of money on treatments provided by the hospital. Only after this course of treatment did Wei and his family learn that the treatment he was receiving had not yet passed required clinical trials. The experimental treatment was not as effective has had been presented on BAIDU, and guaranteed by the hospital.
Wei Zexi passed away due to the cancer on April 2016. After Wei’s situation became public BAIDU became a target of condemnation with many people placing blame on BAIDU’s medical care promotional practices as presenting false information causing Wei’s death in addition to unnecessary financial loss for Wei’s family.
It is against this backdrop that the ACA now issues new regulations targeting internet search providers such as BAIDU.
By Chinese regulatory standards the Provisions are a relatively short affair. Yet they present a major improvement over the previous state of lax or non regulation by providing a clear definition of “internet information search services” and clarifying the regulatory authorities which have responsibility for enforcing the regulations in practice.
The Provisions also outline requirements and obligations for search services providers. The Provisions state that the primary responsibilities for a search engine provider include both providing an internet information review system, as well as to protect personal information.
The Provisions require that: “[Search] Providers shall provide objective, impartial and official search results which will not be detrimental to national welfare, public interest or the legitimate rights of citizens, legal persons and/or other organizations.”
Additionally search providers must clearly indicate any paid advertisements as such, and must display any advertising in compliance with applicable Advertisement and Consumer Protection Laws, and will be liable for “any loss” caused to consumers due to “false or illegal” information.
Prior to the release of these Provisions, internet search engines had been regulated haphazardly, and some may say ineffectively. These changes provide a clear framework for internet search engines such as BAIDU to follow, in addition to working to increase the trust the public may place in internet search results. Customers should be able to more easily distinguish which results are genuine, and which are paid advertisements. Foreign companies seeking to advertise on China’s internet should as always take care that their ads contain only factual statements, and do not exaggerate the effectiveness of the product or service.