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China orders live streamers and gift-giving fans to register with real names

  • Real-name registration for live-streaming viewers prevents underage users from giving generous tips
  • Celebrities, foreigners and influencers buying fake views are all under increased scrutiny with the new rules

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Live-streaming e-commerce has boomed during the coronavirus pandemic, but Chinese regulators are tightening their grip on what has become a popular form of entertainment and shopping. Photo: Xinhua
Karen Chiu

Live streamers in China and their gift-giving fans are now required to register with their real names following new rules unveiled by the country’s media regulators on Monday. The rules also prevent minors from spending money in live streams.

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Under the new directive from the National Radio and Television Administration, internet platforms are now responsible for setting a cap on the tips that each user can give. People under 18 years old are banned from giving gifts to live streamers altogether. Users’ identities need to be verified through facial recognition and manual review.

Previous directives from China’s cyberspace watchdog in 2016 already required live-streaming hosts to register with authorities using an identity card or business license. Now with an added focus on viewers, the new rules are part of increased scrutiny on a sector that has seen explosive growth this year resulting in part from the coronavirus pandemic.

Unlike the first wave of Chinese live streamers who rose to fame mostly by entertaining audiences with dancing or music, the Covid-19 lockdown has given rise to a different kind of internet star – one who thrives on the power to move merchandise.

But as live-streaming e-commerce took off, complaints from buyers also escalated. Accusations of damaged or fake goods are common, as are complaints about missing deliveries and shoddy after-sales services.
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Traditional live streams also continue to draw criticism. One type of complaint that has repeatedly surfaced in news reports concerns children giving large tips to hosts without telling their parents. The new rules are designed to prevent this from happening.

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