A screenshot of microblogging website Fanfou on my computer.
Please note the search for “microblogging,” the open tabs on websites Youku and Douban, and, in the lower left, the notice from my VPN service saying it cannot connect.
Last week CBC Radio’s program Spark featured an interview with Columbia University law professor Tim Wu discussing his new book The Master Switch. The book examines the rise and fall of information empires in radio, Hollywood and, most recently, the internet. Wu argues that what has happened historically with information empires is that after they pass through an early Golden Age they become more and more monopolized, and if this cycle continues we will see the dominance of fewer and fewer companies on the web.
The take over of particular spheres of the internet certainly seems to be happening today. We use Facebook for social networking, Twitter for microblogging, Youtube for online videos, and so forth. However, in China different local monopolies have developed.
Wu’s discussion of the internet in general deals with the issue of growing global monopolies, however elsewhere in an article for Slate.com his take on internet use in China only focuses on the over emphasized, and fairly limited, debate on the censorship of information related to democracy and other “sensitive issues.”
If we look at China’s internet censorship in relation to global monopolies rather than censorship only as censorship, we can come to different conclusions. I do not want to suggest censorship of internet in China is a positive tool in general, rather that the results of it are more complicated than often suggested.
Internet censorship in China not only censors certain information, but also works against American domination of the internet. The somewhat global internet monopolies I listed above (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube) are all American and all banned in China. Yet a number of local alternatives have been able to make great strides within China. Among others, popular sites include Renren and Douban for social networking, Sina Weibo and Fanfou for microblogging, and Youku and Tudou for streaming video.
Even my tech-savvy young Chinese friends, who have VPN programs on their computer that allow access to banned sites, use these local alternatives. Recently, a university student here asked if I had an account on the microblogging site Fanfou. I said “No, I have a Twitter account, but never really use it,” she then replied “Oh, well you’re in China now, use Fanfou.” It is just much more convenient to use the Chinese sites.
Not only are these websites more convenient as they are not blocked by government censors, they are also designed more specifically for the local market. While traditional multinational companies might change their image or product line to some degree in order to enter a foreign market, websites based on user created content have been successful without having to adapt to specific localities. Contrary to this example, Chinese websites have often taken the concepts, or even copied the designs, of popular online services and adapted them to fit with local tastes. The wide variety of emoticons one can use on Renren in comparison to Facebook or even the busy and somewhat cluttered appearance Youku's main page in comparison to Youtube shows very simple changes geared towards the local market.
Although the reasoning behind internet censorship in China is just that, censoring information, it has resulted in stronger local brands online. During the processes of economic reforms in the late 70's and 80's under Chairman Deng Xiaoping something similar, but far more deliberate, occurred. Before foreign businesses were allowed to compete in the market, the local economy needed time to develop. Even after foreign factories opened in China, they were not immediately allowed to sell within the country. Today multinational companies are able to enter China, but the local rivals can put up a much tougher fight with foreign firms as local alternatives have had time to develop and become familiar with the population. For the internet based economy, the Chinese government is accidentally producing similar results.
Looking at popular global monopoly websites Google and Wikipedia, we can already see the outcomes of Chinese internet censorship in strengthening local companies. Wikipedia though previously banned is now accessible. However, it will be disabled if you try to visit pages with “sensitive” information numerous times (such as the page for displaying banned websites in China). Google, a site that has had a number of controversies arise due to its business in China, is accessible, but results of certain searches will be removed. While both sites can be viewed within China and are growing in popularity, the global giants have not been able to develop dominance over the Chinese company Baidu that has both search and Wiki components on one site.
Baidu does not contain the information that is hidden or blocked on Wikipedia and Google, but has maintained more popularity due to either users’ familiarity or preference.
Limiting access to information in China is not something to be encouraged; however, it is naïve to think most Chinese internet users want to spend their time searching for or writing about democracy, Tiananmen Square, and Falun Gong. Like anywhere else, the internet in China is used for somewhat frivolous and often egocentric purposes. What censorship has achieved in China is a number of successful alternatives to internet monopolies.
At this point in time such success may not seem important to anyone other than the employees of Chinese internet based companies. Yet if it is taken in relation to Tim Wu’s argument in The Master Switch, local internet monopolies may be of growing interest for the future the current internet information empire.
As American internet monopolies grow both in popularity and power over our access to information, will governments need to intervene? Can alternatives to the growing hegemony of the American internet prosper or even continue without official government measures like those in place in China? And will the current focus on locality in China lead to a more isolated future for its people or for its increased global dominance? These are issues that connect internet in China to global internet use, but are often overshadowed by the debates over freedom of information.
No comments:
Post a Comment