International Law

China Rules Skype Illegal. Tell Me Something New.

By Dan

I arrived in Shanghai the other day and my first meeting was with co-blogger, Steve Dickinson, who pronounced that Skype had been declared illegal. We both commented on how it is illegal, and then we started talking about inflation.

Skype is illegal in China, of that there can be little doubt. The real question arising from this recent pronouncement is what will this actually mean for Skype in China. I am not a techie, but after talking with a number of people who are, I see the following as the possible repercussions: 

1. Nothing. China will not change a thing regarding Skype. I actually see this as the most likely outcome. I predict China will not "shut down" Skype because those who most often use it are those whom the government wants to keep in their corner. Heck, it wouldn't surprise me a bit if those who most often use it are the sons and daughters of government officials who are off studying overseas.

2. China will "shut down" Skype, but most of those who use it in China will find a workaround for it. Right now, one can purchase minutes on Skype using RMB. If Skype gets shut down, that will probably change. But near as I can tell, there is nothing to stop people from using their VPNs to circumvent the G-F-W and use Skype that way.

At this point, I say nobody should panic. I do note however that every single person with whom I have spoken so far in China is talking of how China is "tightening the noose" and of how inflation is raging out of control and may soon present very real problems. Is shutting down Skype related to this? Is the government seeking to stifle communication regarding inflation's impact? What do you think?

Full post as published by China Law Blog on December 31, 2010 (boomark / email).