The Chinese government made the announcement on May 19 regarding the Green Dam Youth Escort Software, which would become mandatory on all personal computers in the country by July 1. The software is designed to filter out Internet porn and other "unhealthy" online content, whatever that means.
The statement from the U.S. came down from its embassy in Beijing.
“The U.S. is concerned about actions that seek to restrict access to the Internet as well as restrictions on the internationally recognized right to freedom of expression,” the U.S. statement said. “We have asked the Chinese to engage in a dialogue on how to address these concerns,” it said.
Criticism for the software also was heard in other quarters, specifically Charles Mok, chairman of the Hong Kong division of the Internet Society. The Internet Society is an international nonprofit group that tries to provide universal standards for Internet governance.
“For the computer manufacturers, implementing a software of this type typically requires months of trials and testing, and on this occasion, there doesn’t seem to be enough time,” Mok said. “The reputation of companies is at stake here.”
Along with its efforts to block Internet porn, China also recently ordered Google to cut all links to adult content through the Chinese version of its search engine.
Google said it met with government officials to discuss the problem of "pornographic content and material that is harmful to children on the web in China” and that it is taking all necessary steps to fix any problems with our results.