Interim Provisions for the Administration of Internet Culture (Revised in 2017)
Promulgation Authorities: Ministry of Culture
Release Date: 2017-12-15
Source:https://www.mct.gov.cn/preview/whhlyqyzcxxfw/zhgl/202012/t20201222_919862.html
(Adopted at the executive meeting of the Ministry of Culture on February 11, 2011, effective April 1, 2011, and revised in accordance with the Decision of Ministry of Culture on Abolishing and Revising Some Departmental Rules (Decree No.57 of the Ministry of Culture) promulgated on December 15, 2017)
Article 1 In order to strengthen the administration of Internet culture, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Internet culture organizations, and promote the healthy and orderly development of Internet culture in China, these Provisions are formulated in accordance with the Cybersecurity Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on Safeguarding Internet Security, the Administrative Measures for Internet Information Services and other relevant laws and regulations of the state.
Article 2 For the purpose of these Provisions, the term “internet culture products” refers to the cultural products produced, spread, and circulated via Internet, mainly including:
(I) Internet culture products specially produced for Internet, such as online music and entertainment, online games, online shows (programs), online performances, online artworks and online cartoons; and
(II) Internet culture products that are produced by certain technical means and copied to the Internet for spreading such cultural products as music and entertainment, games, shows (programs), performance, artworks and cartoons.
Article 3 For the purpose of these Provisions, the term “Internet culture activities” refers to the activities of providing Internet culture products and services, mainly including:
(I) producing, reproducing, importing, distributing and broadcasting Internet culture products and other activities;
(II) online communication activities of publishing cultural products on Internet, or sending cultural products via information network such as the Internet and mobile communication network to such clients as computers, fixed telephones, mobile telephones, televisions, game players, etc. as well as Internet cafes and other Internet access service business places for users to browse, enjoy, use or download; and
(III) exhibitions, competitions and other activities of Internet culture products.Internet cultural activities are divided into two categories: commercial and non-commercial. The term “commercial Internet culture activities” refers to the activities of providing Internet culture products and services for the purpose of making profits by charging fees from the users accessing the Internet or by means of electronic commerce, advertisement, sponsorship, etc. And the term “non-commercial Internet cultural activities” refers to the activities of providing Internet cultural products and services to users accessing the Internet not for the purpose of making profits.
Article 4 For the purpose of these Provisions, the term “Internet culture organizations” refers to the Internet information service providers that are engaged in Internet culture activities upon the approval of or record filing with the administrative department of culture and the telecommunication authority.All Internet culture activities carried out within the territory of the People’s Republic of China shall be governed by these Provisions.
Article 5 Whoever engages in Internet culture activities shall abide by the Constitution and the relevant laws and regulations, adhere to the orientation of serving the people and socialism, carry forward the excellent national culture, disseminate thoughts, morals and scientific, technological and cultural knowledge beneficial to the improvement of the public’s cultural quality, promotion of economic development and social progress, and enrich the people’s spiritual life.
Article 6 The Ministry of Culture is responsible for formulating the guidelines, policies and planning for the development and administration of Internet culture and supervising and administering the Internet culture activities nationwide.The administrative department of culture of the people’s government of a province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government takes charge of examination and approval of the organizations applying to engage in commercial Internet culture activities, and shall file the organizations engaging in non-commercial Internet culture activities for record.
The administrative department of culture under a people’s government at the county level or above is responsible for supervising and administering the Internet culture activities within its jurisdiction. The administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative law enforcement authority for the cultural market of a people’s government at the county level or above may punish those engaging in Internet culture activities in violation of the relevant regulations of the state.
Article 7 To apply for engaging in commercial Internet culture activities, the applicant shall comply with the relevant provisions of the Measures for the Administration of Internet Information Services, and shall meet the following conditions:
(I) having the organization’s name, domicile, organizational structure and articles of association;
(II) having a well-defined scope of Internet culture activities;
(III) having the professionals, equipment, workplace and corresponding management and technical measures that meet the needs of Internet culture activities;
(IV) having a definite domain name; and
(V) meeting the conditions specified in the laws, administrative regulations and relevant provisions of the state.
Article 8 To apply for engaging in commercial Internet culture activities, the applicant shall file an application with the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government where it is located, and the said administrative department shall examine and approve the application.
Article 9 To apply for engaging in commercial Internet culture activities, the applicant shall submit the following documents:
(II) its business license and articles of association;
(III) the identity supporting document of its legal representative or principal;
(IV) the statement on the scope of its business;
(V) the explanatory materials on its professionals, workplace and corresponding management and technical measures;
(VI) the certificate of domain name registration; and
(VII) other documents to be submitted in accordance with the law.For the application for engaging in commercial Internet culture activities, the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government shall, within 20 days after accepting the application, make a decision on whether or not to approve the application. If the application is approved, a Permit for Network Culture Business will be issued and an announcement made to the public; in case of disapproval, the applicant shall be notified in writing thereof, with reasons stated.
The period of validity for a Permit for Network Culture Business is three years. If the applicant intends to continue its business after the expiration of such period, it shall apply for renewal 30 days before the expiration of such period.
Article 10 A non-commercial Internet culture organization shall, within 60 days after its establishment, file with the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government where it is located for record, and submit the following documents:
(II) the articles of association;
(III) the identity certification document of the legal representative or principal;
(IV) the certificate of domain name registration; and
(V) other documents to be submitted in accordance with the law.
Article 11 After the application for engaging in commercial Internet culture activities is approved, the applicant shall, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Measures for the Administration of Internet Information Services, go through the relevant procedures with the local telecommunication authority or the competent department of information industry under the State Council on the strength of the “Permit for Network Culture Business”.
Article 12 An Internet culture organization shall, in an eye-catching position of the homepage of its website, indicate the number of the Permit for Network Culture Business issued by the administrative department of culture or the number of record-filing, and indicate the number of the Permit for Business Operation issued by the competent department of information industry under the State Council or the telecommunication authority of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government of the Central Government, or the number of record-filing.
Article 13 In the event of changes in its name, domain name, legal representative or principal, registered address, business address, equity structure or the licensed business scope, an Internet culture organization shall, within 20 days after occurrence of such changes, go through the procedures for alteration or record-filing with the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government where it is located.In the event of changes in its name, address, domain name, legal representative or principal, or scope of business, a non-commercial Internet culture organization shall, within 60 days after occurrence of such changes, go through the procedures for record-filing with the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government where it is located.
Article 14 Any commercial Internet culture organization that terminates Internet culture activities it shall, within 30 days after the termination, go through the procedures for deregistration with the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government where it is located.For any commercial Internet culture organization that fails to carry out Internet culture activities within 180 days after it has obtained the “Permit for Network Culture Business” and completed the enterprise registration in accordance with the law, the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government that originally made the examination and approval shall deregister the “Permit for Network Culture Business Operation”, and notify the telecommunication authority of the relevant province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government of the deregistration.
For any non-commercial Internet cultural organization that ceases to carry out Internet cultural activities, the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government that made the original record-filing shall deregister the record-filing, and notify the telecommunication authority of the relevant province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government of the deregistration.
Article 15 The activities of importing Internet culture products shall be carried out by commercial Internet culture organizations that have obtained the “Permit for Network Culture Business” issued by the administrative department of culture, and the contents of the Internet culture products to be imported shall be censored by the Ministry of Culture.The Ministry of Culture shall, within 20 days after it accepts the application for content censoring (excluding the time required for the review by experts), decides on whether or not to approve the application. If the application is approved, an approval document shall be issued to the applicant; if the application is not approved, the reason shall be stated.
Any Internet culture product imported upon approval shall be indicated with the number of the approval document given by the Ministry of Culture in an eye-catching position, and it is not allowed to illegally change the name of the product or add or delete any content of the product. If the product is not used for commercial purpose domestically within one year as of the date of approval, the importer shall file the case with the Ministry of Culture for record, with the reasons stated; in case the importer decides to terminate the import, the Ministry of Culture shall revoke its number of approval.
Any commercial Internet culture organization shall, within 30 days as of the official business operation of a domestic Internet culture product, file its business operation with the administrative department of culture at the provincial level or above for record, and shall indicate the number of record-filing given by the Ministry of Culture in an eye-catching position. The specific measures shall be formulated separately.
Article 16 No Internet culture organization may provide any culture product containing any of the following contents:
(I) opposing the basic principles determined by the Constitution;
(II) endangering the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state;
(III) divulging any secret of the state, endangering national security or damaging the honor or interests of the state;
(IV) inciting any ethnic hatred or discrimination, undermining the solidarity among ethnic groups, or infringing upon ethnic customs or habits;
(V) advocating any cult or superstition;
(VI) disseminating any rumor, disturbing the social order or destroying the social stability;
(VII) advocating any obscenity, gambling or violence, or instigating any crime;
(VIII) insulting or slandering others, or infringing upon the lawful rights and interests of others;
(IX) offense against the social morality or the excellent national culture and tradition; or
(X) other contents prohibited by laws, administrative regulations or provisions of the state.
Article 17 Where a cultural product provided by an Internet culture organization infringes upon the legitimate rights and interests of any citizen, legal person or other organization, the Internet culture organization shall bear the civil liability in accordance with the law.
Article 18 Any Internet culture organization shall establish a self-examination system, specify a special department, and equip with professionals to be responsible for the self-examination and management of the contents and activities of Internet culture products, so as to ensure the legality of the contents and activities of Internet culture products.
Article 19 Where an Internet culture organization finds that an Internet culture product it supplies contains any of the contents listed in Article 16 hereof, it shall immediately stop the supply thereof, keep the relevant records, and report the case to the administrative department of culture of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government where it is located, and make a copy of the same to the Ministry of Culture.
Article 20 Any Internet culture organization shall record and back up the contents of the cultural products it supplies as well as the time and Internet address or domain name. The record and backup shall be kept for 60 days and shall be provided to the relevant department of the state for inquiry in accordance with the law.
Article 21 For any organization that engages in commercial Internet culture activities without approval, the cultural administration authorities or the cultural market enforcement authorities of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order it to stop the commercial Internet culture activities, give it a warning and impose concurrently a fine less than CNY 30,000 against it; if it refuses to stop the commercial Internet culture activities, it shall be blacklisted in the cultural market and be subject to punishment for dishonesty in accordance with the law.
Article 22 For any non-commercial Internet culture organization that violates Article 10 hereof by failing to go through the formalities for record-filing within the prescribed time limit, the cultural administration authorities or cultural market enforcement authorities of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections within a time limit; if such organization refuses to make corrections, the cultural administration authorities or cultural market enforcement authorities of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order it to cease the Internet culture activities, and may impose concurrently a fine less than CNY 1,000 against it.
Article 23 For any commercial Internet culture organization in violation of Article 12 hereof, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections within a time limit, and may impose concurrently a fine not more than CNY 10,000 against it depending on the seriousness of the circumstance.For any non-commercial Internet culture organization in violation of Article 12 hereof, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections within a time limit; if such organization refuses to make corrections, it shall be ordered to cease the Internet culture activities and concurrently imposed a fine less than CNY 500.
Article 24 For any commercial Internet culture organization in violation of Article 13 hereof, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections, confiscate its illegal gains, and may impose concurrently a fine not less than CNY 10,000 but not more than CNY 30,000 against it; if the circumstance is serious, such organization shall be ordered to suspend business for rectification or even have its Permit for Internet Culture Business revoked; if a crime is constituted, such organization shall be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.For any non-commercial Internet culture organization in violation of Article 13 hereof, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections within a time limit; if such organization refuses to do so, it shall be ordered to cease the Internet culture activities and imposed concurrently a fine not more than CNY 1,000 against it.
Article 25 For any commercial Internet culture organization that violates Article 15 hereof by failing to indicate the number of the document of approval issued by the Ministry of Culture in an eye-catching position when engaging in the business of imported Internet culture products, or by failing to indicate the record-filing number given by the Ministry of Culture in an eye-catching position when engaging in the business of domestic Internet culture products, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections, and may impose concurrently a fine not more than CNY 10,000 against it.
Article 26 For any commercial Internet culture organization that violates Article 15 hereof by changing the name of an imported Internet culture product, or by adding or deleting the contents of such product without permission, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to cease the supply of the product, confiscate its illegal gains, and may impose concurrently a fine not less than CNY 10,000 but not more than CNY 30,000 against it; if the circumstance is serious, such organization shall be ordered to suspend business for rectification or even have its Permit for Internet Culture Business revoked; if a crime is constituted, such organization shall be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.
Article 27 For any commercial Internet culture organization that violates Article 15 hereof by failing to file with the administrative department of culture for record when engaging in the business of domestic Internet culture products within the prescribed time limit, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections, and may impose concurrently a fine not more than CNY 20,000 against it.
Article 28 For any commercial Internet culture organization that provides Internet culture products containing the contents prohibited by Article 16 hereof, or provides Internet culture products imported without approval of the Ministry of Culture, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to cease the supply of the products, confiscate its illegal gains, and impose concurrently a fine not less than CNY 10,000 but not more than 30,000 against it; if the circumstance is serious, such organization shall be ordered to suspend business for rectification or even be subject to revocation of its Permit for Internet Culture Business; if a crime is constituted, such organization shall be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.For any non-commercial Internet culture organization that provides Internet culture products containing the contents prohibited by Article 16 hereof, or provides Internet culture products imported without approval of the Ministry of Culture, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to cease the supply of the products, and may impose concurrently a fine not more than CNY 1,000 against it; if a crime is constituted, such organization shall be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.
Article 29 For any commercial Internet culture organization in violation of Article 18 hereof, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall order such organization to make corrections, and may impose concurrently a fine not more than CNY 20,000 against it in light of the seriousness of the circumstance.
Article 30 For any commercial Internet culture organization in violation Article 19 hereof, the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative department of culture market of the people’s government above county level with jurisdiction shall give such organization a warning, order such organization to make corrections within a time limit, and may impose concurrently a fine not more than CNY 10,000 against it.
Article 31 For any organization in violation Article 20 hereof, the telecommunication authority of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government shall order such organization to make corrections; if the circumstance is serious, the telecommunication authority of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government shall order such organization to suspend business for rectification or order such organization to temporarily close its website.
Article 32 The comprehensive administrative law enforcement department of culture market as mentioned in the present Provisions refers to the administrative law enforcement body that exercises the administrative punishment power, relevant supervision and inspection power, and administrative enforcement power in the field of culture in a relatively concentrated manner in accordance with the relevant laws, regulations and rules of the state.
Article 33 Jurisdiction shall be exercised by the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative law enforcement department of culture market over investigation and punishment of an illegal business activity based on the place of registration or the actual place of business of the enterprise that commits the illegal business activity; if the place of registration or the actual place of business of the enterprise cannot be determined, jurisdiction shall be exercised by the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative law enforcement department of culture market at the place of information service permit or at the place of record-filing of the website that commits the illegal business activity; in case of absence of permit or record-filing, jurisdiction shall be exercised by the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative law enforcement department of culture market at the place where the server of the website is set; if the server of the website is set overseas, jurisdiction shall be exercised by the administrative department of culture or the comprehensive administrative law enforcement department of culture market at the place of occurrence of the illegal activity.
Article 34 The present Provisions shall come into force as of April 1, 2011, repealing the Interim Provisions for the Administration of Internet Culture promulgated on May 10, 2003 and revised on July 1, 2004 simultaneously.