Vietnam requires licenses for web sites
A new Vietnamese ruling requires organisations with regularly updated web sites to register with the government. It’s possible that the regulation is intented to include foreign web sites. Individuals are exempt, as ISPs and internet cafes are already required to monitor and censor their customers.
A copy of the October 10 ruling, seen by Reuters on Wednesday, did not explain the license requirement but said Web site owners must not provide information that would harm Vietnam’s independence and its national security, agitate for war or expose state secrets.[...]
Diplomatic missions, non-governmental organizations and news agencies “willing to provide information on the Internet in Vietnam” must obtain a license by the Foreign Ministry, the document said.
Owners of Web sites that frequently update information fall under the new rule, Do Quy Doan, head of the Ministry of Culture and Information’s press department was quoted by Wednesday’s Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper as saying.
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The rule did not make clear if local Web sites based on overseas computer servers would have to be licensed.
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The rule excludes individuals with Web sites, as Internet service providers are expected to monitor their activities, Doan was quoted by Tuoi Tre as saying
– Reuters, Vietnam Requires Businesses to License Web Sites.