China's new diktat for social media influencers: 'don't violate public order or good morals'

With the boom in the advent of the Internet, guerrilla marketing or influencer marketing has increased tremendously.

In 2017 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) introduced the first set of regulations for North American influencers who were posting sponsored content.

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) followed in the summer of 2021 and now its China's turn. 

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce has now outlined proposals for an "industry standard" for influencers or live-streamers who market products on online shopping platforms.

The rules include

• details about how hosts on such shows should dress. Their image should not violate public order or good morals. 
• The rules also suggest that hosts "speak Mandarin during the streaming" and be "objective and honest" about the products they try to sell.

The Chinese govt says, these rules are intended to "create a good e-commerce environment for consumers,".

If hosts violate the law, they could be warned or punished by restricting their traffic, suspending them or even blacklisting and removing their account. This proposal is open to public opinion till September 2.