Controversy continues over a new rule requiring the installation of Web-monitoring software in public places, most notably in Beijing's Dongcheng District, which threatens to seriously curtail wireless service in bars, restaurants, hotels and bookstores.
(Ecns.cn)—Customers at a bookstore called "Kubrick" in Beijing's Dongcheng District last Wednesday were surprised to find the Internet service off limits to their laptop computers and cell phones.
A message on their bills provided the explanation: "According to a circular issued by the public security bureau, the shop has stopped WiFi service. Sorry for any inconvenience caused."
The same frustration was shared by café-goers in tourist areas such as Dongzhimen and Nanluoguxiang, where streets and narrow alleys are rife with bars and trendy shops.
Internet surfing at cafés, restaurants and hotels has become increasingly popular in China, especially among office workers. As a result, free WiFi has become a standard attraction in shops hoping to lure regular customers.
The circular quoted on the receipts at "Kubrick" is in fact a regulation introduced and made effective in June requiring "public spaces that provide wireless services, such as hotels, e-libraries, and KTVs in Dongcheng District" to install Web-monitoring software, which is designed to supervise illegal activities by passing the identities of customers using free wireless services to public security departments.
The software, developed by Shanghai-based Rain-Soft Software, will cost business owners 20,000 yuan ($3,100). Those who refuse to pay and offer unfettered Internet access may face a 15,000-yuan ($2,331) fine.
Service disconnected
Most business owners have been forced to disconnect their WiFi service, saying they cannot afford to install such expensive software so the government can spy on a service they provide for free.
"If it was around 1-2 thousand yuan ($155-310), I would think about it," a café owner at Nanluoguxiang told Dongfang Daily. "20,000? Forget it, I'd rather stop the service."
Another café owner in Wudaoying Hutong also stopped providing free WiFi after attending a meeting at the district's public security bureau on July 22.
"I don't think small business owners like us should pay for such software, which will only take up more of the hutong's already strained bandwidth, so I'd rather shut it down," the owner said.
Business owners in other districts who had not heard about the new regulation expressed disapproval and perplexity when they were told how much the installation would cost.
Yang Xiaowen, manager of UBC Coffee in Chaoyang District, said that because it is a requirement by public security organs, there is no reason for business owners to pay for the software.
Most shop owners said they would keep their WiFi service unless the regulation is enforced by the public security bureau.
"Approximately 30 percent of our regular customers use WiFi at our shop," said a café owner in the Jiaodaokou area of Dongcheng District. "I don't think it is reasonable. If someone thinks something needs to be controlled, then they should have to pay for it."
According to a report published in The Beijing News, the regulation stated that all "illegal income" of business owners who continue to offer unrestricted WiFi access will be confiscated. "The wireless services are free of charge," one shop owner argued, "so where does this 'illegal income' come from?" According to many customers, the new regulation oversteps the line of privacy.
Ms. Guan, a staff member at a consulting company who often uses WiFi in the "Sculpting in Time" café in Chaoyang district, said she does not like the feeling of being watched. Another customer named Ms. Zhou said she would do private work at home rather than in public after the regulation takes effect.
