The Executive Yuan yesterday issued a decree to promulgate measures for local governments to follow in regulating Internet cafe businesses. The Internet cafe industry, which was involved in drafting the measures, yesterday vowed that it would adhere to them.
According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (
PHOTO: CHEN CHENG-CHANG, TAIPEI TIMES
Taiwan has no law governing the industry, which began to take off about five years ago.
The measures are designed to help regulate Internet cafes prior to the enactment of legislation governing the industry.
The Cabinet yesterday said it is also considering enacting a law specifically designed to regulate Internet cafes.
The previous lack of uniform principles laid down by the central government to regulate the cafes often led to owners complaining about local governments using confusing and inadequate standards in regulating businesses.
Many local governments have already been regulating Internet cafes by applying strict regulations governing video-game parlors, which has annoyed the owners.
Game parlors, for example, are not allowed to be set up in residential areas in order to prevent disturbances in the neighborhood. But 70 percent of Internet cafes have been running their businesses in these cheaper-rent areas rather than commercial areas in order to help to balance their low charges with the high investment necessary to maintain their systems.
Others, not knowing how their Internet cafes should be classified, have registered them as restaurants or video-game parlors. Technically such cyber cafes are illegal as they are incorrectly classified.
These cafes are frequently fined by the police for being in unauthorized locations or being totally different in nature from the business registered with the authorities.
"If Taiwan wants to develop itself into an island of information technology, the government cannot wipe out the booming Internet cafe businesses. A large proportion of the sales of computer hardware and software and Internet service programs depend on Internet businesses, said Lin Gen-yi (林正義), president of the Internet Development Association (網際網路發展協會).
The association is authorized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs to grant the Corporate Identification System (CIS), a guarantee of quality, to Internet cafes complying with the list of measures drawn up by the Cabinet.
"Internet cafes must be guided to the right track before persuading the government into legalizing well-operated businesses," Lin said.
"Good Internet cafes can help people learn to use information technology through game playing or Web-surfing. We can provide quality Internet connections for schools in the neighborhood for educational purposes," the association says.
Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (
But he emphasized that on-line obscenity and violence as well as addiction to visiting these cafes should be avoided.
He also suggested the setting up of a ratings system for Internet content.
Some regard Internet cafes as hotbeds of criminal activity, while many students enjoy playing games as well as making friends with Web surfers with using broad band services in Internet cafes.
The association said that with CIS approval for Internet cafes, which conforms with the measures decreed yesterday, the police can focus on cracking down on those running gambling and prostitution services or providing indecent content and threatening the reputation of the entire industry.
Under the new measures, teenagers under the age of 18 are not allowed in Internet cafes during school hours or allowed to stay in them past midnight. Those under 16 have to leave the cafes at 10pm. Alcohol and tobacco are also prohibited to those under 18.
Gambling, prostitution, the use of unauthorized software and provision of obscene content are banned. The cafes are also obliged to monitor and record users' online activities to help police investigate any crimes committed.
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