China is constantly working on the blockchain strategy. The legislature is already taking advantage of the technology.
On Monday, China’s office of the Central Commission on Cyberspace Affairs and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) have a new blockchain agenda published. This includes a five-point plan to promote blockchain technology for the country’s industrial development. The document names economy, finance, industrialization and public services as the main priorities for the country’s blockchain development.
Last week the Copyright Society of China (CSC) started their project called China Copyright Chain. The CSC is a public, government-affiliated institution under the care of National Copyright Administration. The Supreme People’s Court of China already recognized evidence authenticated via blockchain in September 2018 and considered it to be legally binding. The internet courts in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have also started using blockchain technology to conduct meetings and document court records.
The blockchain can significantly reduce the cost of protecting digital copyrights, increase efficiency and provide new avenues for evidence collection, trading in digital assets and protecting the rights of those who own those copyrights,
said Xiaohong Yan, chairman of CSC, during one Forums about innovation and copyright protection. China faces a number of criminal law violations and piracy cases related to digital content. Some of the most common copyright infringements involve short videos, music, and online literature.
China blocked Weibo accounts from crypto influencers
MIIT’s proposal for blockchain application for public institutions basically takes the same approach. The document relies heavily on the immutability aspect of blockchain-based technologies. Evidence in areas such as judicial filing, civil registers, and administrative law enforcement activities can be better secured. The MIIT document places a very strong focus on blockchain adoption. However, there is no mention of cryptocurrencies or tokens.
Meanwhile, Beijing continues to tighten its crackdown on cryptocurrencies. According to reports Beijing has blocked the accounts of some cryptocurrency experts from its Chinese Twitter counterpart, Weibo. Apparently one wants to avoid an Elon Musk effect, in which individual posts have a great effect on the price development. Other users who attempted to access these sites were greeted with a message stating that the accounts had violated Weibo policies and “relevant laws and regulations”. To what extent the Chinese government actually wants to ban Bitcoin mining little by little can be read in our exclusive report.