RTXVQJL.jpg (Photo : Reuters)
Chinese media issued a guideline for online writers to register with their real names before the release of their works.
State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) issued the guideline. The agency said that online literature has become an important part of the country's digital publishing industry, gaining wide popularity among literature fans and young people.
The requirement could help the authorities manage the online literature industry and protect the authors' intellectual property, experts said.
Online literature is filled with plagiaristic and stereotypical works that seek only economic benefits. The industry also faces incomplete supervision by authorities, Xinhua reported.
Online literature is becoming more popular, but the booming industry lacks management, Zhang Yiwu, professor of Chinese at Peking University pointed out.
"The guideline could make authors more aware of their rights and duties. Authors enjoy freedom but also need to obey the law," Zhang said. He also added that the new guideline will also help to protect the intellectual property rights of online authors.
Shen Jiake, an online and media commentator, pointed out that authors would need to exercise greater self-discipline in the future under the new guideline, so that anyone who violates laws and regulations in their works would be held accountable.
The guideline was released in response to the remarks of Chinese President Xi Jinping on Chinese literature in October last year.
He addressed renowned authors, actors, scriptwritere and dancers in the symposium and urged artists to create more works that are both artistically outstanding and morally inspiring in order to serve the people and present core socialist values.
