Chinese Government To Block VoIP Calls Because Of Money

The Chinese government's decision to ban foreign voice over IP phones may be linked to worries surrounding the impact that services like Skype and Google Voice may have on China's own state telecommunication companies.

The move is considered

The move is considered by some, like the Washington Post, to be a bold one aimed at protecting earnings for China Telecom, China Unicom and China Mobile.

A Chinese newspaper added that the three telcos would be the only ones allowed to carry VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) services and are unlikely to be very cheap.

It's worth noting that the new regulations will ban VoIP to landline/mobile calls now won't affect client-to-client calls.

Still it remains to be seen how the government will block VoIP services especially if, as expected, foreign telecommunication companies like Skype introduce Web-based voice over IP services.

Back in July 2009, the Chinese government cancelled its internet filtering application known as the Green Dam Youth Escort which was aimed at filtering online adult material.

Banning foreign web services means that China is coming up with its own internet giants just as Tencent QQ, Baidu and Renren.

I have been musing and writing about innovation since 1999 back in my native country Mauritius, dreaming back in 1997 of a world full of avatars...