Mobile Phone Media and Its Public Opinion Management

Abstract

This chapter mainly discusses the concept, characteristics and cases of the mobile media and mobile media public opinion as well as their management, and lays stress on studying the development and characteristics of WeChat, the major social media and mobile payment platform in China.

1 Concept and Characteristics of Mobile Phone Media

Media, also known as “媒介” or “媒质,” is an information carrier. According to Xiandai Hanyu Cidian (meaning Modern Chinese Dictionary), media refer to “tools for communicating and disseminating information like newspapers , broadcasting and advertisements.”¹

As mentioned earlier, the mobile phone media has emerged and has profound social influence. We believe that the so-called mobile phone media is a tool for information dissemination with the help of mobile phones. As communications technology and computer technology developed and smartphones became popular, mobile phones are no longer “mobile telephones” anymore, but mini computers with a communications function; and mobile phone media is the extension of network media (see Fig. 7.2). Mobile phone media has to become a new part of network media where information is tremendous, or it will face the problem of a lack of information.

Mobile phone media is an important member of new media. It has to be specially highlighted that short messaging is just a form of existence of mobile phone media, but not all, and it does not represent the direction of mobile phone media in the future. In China, many people mistake mobile phone short message service (SMS) for mobile phone media and call SMS “the fifth media.” As a matter of fact, SMS is enormously demanded and a short message culture has been developed in China because of China’s specific telecom management system and charging model.

1.1 Characteristics of Mobile Phone Media

Mobile phone media has the basic characteristic of being digital, and its most essential dissemination characteristic is being interactive and its biggest advantage is being portable and user-friendly. Meanwhile, as the extension of network media, mobile phone media is featured by high interactivity, fast information access, fast dissemination and fast updates of network media. All these features enable mobile phones to penetrate all walks of life in the human society and profoundly affect human dissemination activities.

1.1.1 Advantages of Mobile Phone Media

1.1.1.1 High Mobility and Portability

Mobile phone media is highly mobile and portable and realizes extremely convenient information dissemination. Mobile phones have become a part of people’s daily life. That mobile phone media is highly portable makes it highly personalized, private and next to skin. Mobile phones are “a media with body temperature,” and are really close to people’s life. It requires that mobile phone media disseminators provide personalized information according to user demands, that is, to truly realize focus dissemination.

1.1.1.2 Instant Information Dissemination

Mobile phone dissemination is digital. Information dissemination through mobile phones is fast and highly timely, covers a wide range and is less restrained. Given the huge number of mobile phone users, the audience for mobile phone dissemination is enormous.

It is obvious that mobile phone media has the advantage of being instant. Without the need to turn on their computers or TVs, many of the audience can access, through mobile phone media, real-time news, scene pictures or videos of the scene that are provided by authoritative media agencies. Mobile phone media realizes instant information receipt and dynamic information dissemination. In particular, when there is a sudden event, mobile phone media can also realize dynamic dissemination of news like websites.

Information dissemination via mobile phones is updated frequently at a low cost. The update cycle of information that is disseminated through mobile phones can be counted in seconds, but that through TV and broadcasting by day or hour; the publication cycle of newspapers by day, even week; and the update cycle of paper journals and books is even longer. That mobile phone dissemination is instant improves the timeliness of news. Meanwhile, mobile phone dissemination realizes “asynchrony of information receipt.” For example, if one receives a short message, one may read and reply to it whenever one has time. The asynchrony of information receipt exempts the audience from the restriction of the time of media dissemination, and allows the audience to receive and use information anytime as needed.

1.1.1.3 Interactivity

Mobile phone dissemination is a form of open and interactive dissemination. The dissemination mode of traditional media is usually one-way in reality, that is, the disseminators and the audience can’t realize two-way communication any time anywhere. Mobile phone dissemination may be one-way, or two-way, even multi-way. Mobile phone dissemination is highly interactive.

Mobile phone media has an incomparable advantage over traditional media in terms of “interactivity.” An important characteristic of traditional mass media is one-way information dissemination, which causes audience feedback to be always behind time, untimely and indirect in most cases. Mobile phone media not only releases news that the users need, but has functions such as tracking, collection of materials, investigation of readers and readers’ comments. It provides more and more convenient services for the readers and the newspaper offices and realizes more extensive and faster interaction.

Mobile phone dissemination highlights personalization and humanity and stresses user participation. Relative to traditional mass media, mobile phone media is significantly diversified in terms of dissemination forms, and integrates interpersonal dissemination, group dissemination, organization dissemination and mass dissemination into one. Mobile phones in themselves are tools for interpersonal communication. Forums, chat rooms and mobile QQ, with the help of mobile phone media, further enrich the channels for interpersonal communication. Group dissemination can be realized conveniently on mobile phone media. Many mobile phone websites focus on building themed BBS, thematic forums and mobile phone communities for the communication of users with the same hobbies or demands.

Mobile phone dissemination is humanized. Mobile phone media is small and portable, so it meets individuals’ demands more. Mobile phone media is a media that can be “mastered” and controlled by people instead of separating people from the media—as do traditional media—or “submerging” people, as happens on network media. It further demonstrates the mainstay status of mankind. The mobile phone, as a media “that constitutes a part of human body,” is organic in nature, and vividly interprets “media is the extension of mankind.”

1.1.1.4 Rich Audience Resources

An important indicator to measure if a media is competitive or not is the real and potential audience population. For mobile phone media, the least worry would be the users. Mobile phone users in China have broken through 1.3 billion, far greater than the population of cybercitizens and newspaper readers. Relative to newspapers and magazines with the biggest circulation, the websites with the highest click-through rate, and outdoor media in stations and subway stations with the biggest traffic of passengers, mobile phone media has an even bigger audience that covers an even wider range of types.

A mobile phone is more than just a simple tool of communications. Its rapid development is changing people’s way of life. A mobile phone is becoming a device for disseminating and integrating information, even a digital entertainment center for individuals. In the future, the main development goal of the mobile communications industry will shift from expanding the population of users to maximizing the profits per capita. Although in many mature markets, the mobile phones possession has reached saturation point, using mobile phones for information dissemination and profiteering purposes is still at the initial development stage.

1.1.1.5 Multimedia Dissemination

Mobile phones have an increasingly stronger function to process information. Surfing the Internet, taking photos, recording sounds and filming have become the basic functions of a lot of mobile phones, and multimedia mobile phones have gradually become popular. The operational platform of mobile phones has seen great changes, and the computerization trend of mobile phones has become reality. Some newly launched mobile phones have also integrated the latest applications like mobile blog and instant messaging, and the information processing and dissemination functions of mobile phones are constantly enhanced.

1.1.1.6 A Mobile Phone is Also an Important Tool for News Interviews

In July 2005, in a few seconds right after the serial bombings in London, a dozen subway passengers and pedestrians near the bombed bus shot the terrifying scenes at the first time with their mobile phones. Some shot the scene of the bombing at a subway station (see Fig. 7.1). According to the photos, there were thick smoke everywhere and passengers had to cover their mouths. Another photo captured a nearby man who was taking photos with his mobile phone, too.

Fig. 7.1

Mobile phone photos of London subway bombing

The video clips and photos on TV and news websites presented the scene of desperate subway passengers running for their lives. There were also photos indicating unconscious passengers lying on the ground after the bus bombing. They clearly captured the situation of passengers with black ash on their faces fleeing for their lives. A woman curled up in pain on the sidewalk. There was spattered blood on the buildings around.

The rapid rise of mobile phone media technology has enabled almost all ordinary people in the world to shoot sudden news and put them on the Internet. The way that the world witnesses history is changing, and celebrities have no chance to hide their embarrassing moments. Some Western scholars call this phenomenon “grassroots journalism” and “grassroots journalists.” With a mobile phone, anyone can become a journalist.

1.1.1.7 Privacy

The mobile phone media is a highly personalized media. It is not like TV, which families watch together, or newspapers, which can be passed around for reading. It is a distinctively personal information dissemination tool with personalized labels, and it is highly private. Every mobile phone terminal corresponds to a specific audience, allowing it to follow user information and behavior more accurately than Internet IP addresses.

1.1.1.8 Conformability

A mobile phone is an important platform for medium integration. Mobile phone media can integrate diversified media forms, carry the content of traditional media like newspapers, broadcasting and TV, and fully display all the dissemination advantages of network media.

1.1.1.9 Organic Unity of Synchronous and Asynchronous Dissemination

Mobile phone media organically unite synchronous and asynchronous news dissemination, that is, users with the news dissemination tools provided by mobile phone media can receive information from the disseminators in real time and have real-time communication with other users, or access the information disseminated by the disseminators and communicate with the other users at any selected time. It is like the dissemination model of network media.

1.1.2 Disadvantages of Mobile Phone Dissemination

The biggest advantage of mobile phones as a media is their portability. Mobile phone media is a digital new media. As mobile phone media extends network media, many characteristics (including defects) of network media are extended to mobile phone media. At the present stage, mobile phone media has the defects discussed in the following sections.

1.1.2.1 Dissemination of False and Unhealthy Information

Some rogue elements release false information, and bluff and deceive wantonly. Obscene information and rumors spread through mobile phones, jeopardize social atmosphere, mislead the public, and cause chaos in the social order.

1.1.2.2 Infringement of Individual Privacy

More and more rogue elements take stealthy photographs with mobile phones or other electronic products, and the legislation organs in some countries and regions are only slowly beginning to intervene.

1.1.2.3 Information Garbage

Spam emails received by Chinese cybercitizens are now equivalent to normal emails, and there are countless spam messages too.

1.1.2.4 Information Security

Some mobile phone hackers design special mobile phone software viruses to attack the vast number of mobile phone users. Some viruses utilize the loopholes or defects of the programs of mobile phone chips to spread virus codes through SMS and cause damage. The mobile phone viruses in the past could cause automatic power-off or failure of mobile phones, even damage mobile phone chips. Some viruses even caused mobile phones to call the police automatically, or automatically forward the contacts in them.

1.1.2.5 Mobile Phones’ Inherent Technical Defects: Small Screen, Insufficient Battery Capacity

A small screen is an inherent defect of mobile phones. However, in recent years, mobile phone screens are getting bigger and bigger. Before 2011, 3.5 inches was the mainstream size of mobile phone screen, and in 2009, many mobile phone manufacturers had begun to manufacture 4.0-inch or bigger mobile phone screen. In September 2011, Samsung launched the 5.3-inch Galaxy Note and made an enormous success. After 2012, big screen mobile phones have become the mainstream.

However, battery life remains a factor that restrains the development of smartphones. People are more and more reliant on smartphones, but the development of battery technology can’t meet the demand. The solution now is increasing battery capacity, but it is far from being enough. Brand-new charging technology (e.g., charge with kinetic energy, fuel cell technology) is the future development direction.

Despite the defects of mobile phone media, mobile phone, as a new media, has realized a breakthrough, and is becoming an information system that people carry with them. As a new terminal for information dissemination, the mobile phone, being efficient, convenient, timely and interactive, provides more colorful and personalized information services for people any time anywhere. It will be a brand-new form of cultural production and an information dissemination channel that is different from the past and challenges traditional media.

Seen from its characteristics, mobile phone media is completely different from traditional media, and is similar to the network in terms of dissemination characteristics. It has integrated functions. For example, when calling people, it is mobile phone; when texting messages, it is a text medium; when surfing the Internet, it is a network media. It is safe to say that mobile phone media is the extension of network media.

The big population of mobile phone users has constituted a tremendous, but scattered audience that is necessary for mass dissemination. As their functions grow stronger, mobile phones are turning from a communications tool into an information platform.

Mobile phones are mobile and personalized. On the one hand, real-time rolling news allow the users to read some important and brief news anytime anywhere on the road; on the other, the information collection network, media brands, advertising operation and social accountability that have long been developed by traditional media like newspapers, broadcasting and TV remain insurmountable thresholds for the other emerging media.

2 Problems Caused by Mobile Phone Media

Mobile phones, as mini computers, used to be a mobile means of communication, but have become mass media now. Mobile phones are changing the dissemination pattern in Chinese society rapidly and reshaping people’s habit of information dissemination. They promote social communication and interaction and bring to people unprecedented convenience and freedom of information delivery. Mobile phone media, as a newborn thing, has relative superiority over the other media, but there are inevitable defects in its development and negative impacts that can never be ignored. In particular, if the dissemination of abundant and diversified information is left unchecked, it will easily pollute information dissemination and deteriorate the dissemination ecology. The defects of mobile phone media are discussed in the following subsections.

2.1 Illegal Short Messages

The priority in the administration of illegal short messages is to check the behavior of sending short messages through mobile phones illegally, specifically sending short messages for fraud purpose in the name of banks (see Fig. 7.2); spreading pornographic, gambling, violence and frightening content; selling guns, explosives, smuggled cars, drugs and fake banknotes illegally; releasing false information about winning lotteries, marriage introduction or recruitment; or seducing or introducing others to prostitute.

Fig. 7.2

Harms of short messages

Some rogue elements release false information, and bluff and deceive wantonly. Obscene information and rumors spread through mobile phones, jeopardize social atmosphere, mislead the public, and cause chaos in the social order.

2.2 Garbage Information Disseminated Through Mobile Phones

Dissemination of false and harmful information and floods of garbage information are two of the thorny problems in the development of mobile phone media.

According to a research done jointly by the University of St. Gallen and International Telecommunication Union, over 80% of the European mobile phone users have received at least one piece of garbage information in the form of a short message.

The research result also shows that 83% of the interviewees believe that receiving spam information will become a serious problem to haunt them in the next one or two years.

The United States and the Republic of Korea require consumers to present their resident’s ID cards when buying mobile phones so that the sellers can input consumers’ ID numbers and addresses into the telecommunication operators’ central databases. When a mobile phone user sends information, the memory unit of the telecommunication system will have the sender’s mobile phone number, with which the sender’s name or address can be accessed.

Some countries allow advertisers to send advertisements through mobile phone SMS, but with conditions. For example, advertisements in short messages must be clearly indicated, and advertisers are not allowed to send advertisements in short messages between 21:00 at night and 8:00 the next morning.

2.3 Security Problem Brought About by Mobile Phones

Since the mobile communication network uses mobile phones—made up of hardware and software—as the terminal devices, some overseas companies try to change the software or hardware in mobile phones to turn mobile phones into devices for eavesdropping and taking stealth photographs. Such devices resemble ordinary mobile phones on the outside, and have the normal communication function. Some altered mobile phones, even if powered off by the users, can be activated by others and got through without ringing so that sounds around them can be heard stealthily. The mobile phone operational system also has some “backdoors.” Some mobile phones which can surf the Internet will pass mobile phone viruses or be implanted with eavesdropping programs through the Internet, and have functions of illegal eavesdropping and remote control.

Mobile phone dissemination also causes national security problems.

In Russia’s Chechen war, the Russia Air Force discovered traces of the head of Chechen separatists through electronic reconnaissance and easily killed him.

In March 2002, Abu Zubaydah, Bin Laden’s capable assistant and No. 2 figure of Al Qaeda, was seized because he exposed his hideout after using a mobile phone.

Therefore, mobile phone communication is an open e-communication system. With corresponding receiving equipment, the conversation of anyone any time anywhere can be intercepted.

Even if in a standby state, mobile phones can keep uninterrupted signal exchanges with the communication network, and the electromagnetic spectrums can easily discover, identify, detect and follow targets with detection and supervisory technologies, pinpoint the targets and get valuable intelligence from them.

Even if a mobile phone is powered off, experts can still turn its receiver on remotely with special instruments for eavesdropping purpose. Therefore, as long as users put their mobile phones beside them, they have no secrets at all. During the manufacturing process, mobile phones have been implanted with receiving and delivery functions in their chips. Even if they are powered off, such mobile phones, as long as they have batteries, will receive voice information and deliver such information anytime. Through the repeater station on the geostationary satellite, such information will be delivered to a ground processing system. Mobile phone users are suggested to take batteries out of their phones when necessary to completely cut off the power of their mobile phones; or put their mobile phones far away from where they talk to avoid being eavesdropped.

The intelligence departments, important military and government departments in some developed countries all forbid the use of mobile phones in office areas, even mobile phones that have already been powered off.

Also, cases of terrorists setting off bombs with mobile phones happens from time to time.

China is the country with the most mobile phone users in the world. If it fails to fully recognize the double-edge sword effect of mobile phones, the security of its national defense intelligence, economic intelligence and science and technology intelligence will be seriously threatened.

2.4 Problem of Citizen Privacy Protection Brought About by Mobile Phones

Smartphone cameras are getting increasingly popular. Some mobile phones have unique designs oo special functions—like the pick-up lens installed on the back which can be hidden. Therefore, even if one pretends to be talking on the phone, he can easily take stealthies of secrets or infringe privacy.

2.4.1 Mobile Phones Have Multiple Functions, and Their Filming and Sound Recording Functions Are Worrisome

The most influential and controversial issue at present is mobile phone cameras’ function to take stealthies. It is worrisome that mobile phones support filming, and it is even terrifying that mobile phones support sound recording. In the past, a recorder was needed to stealthily record other people’s talk, which would easily be discovered no matter how small it was. It is unlikely to cause suspicion using a mobile phone. Many ignore mobile phones’ sound recording function. A few buttons alone can help record the talks at both ends of the line. In daily chats, mobile phones can record what others say without being noticed by the latter. In the era of the third-generation mobile phones, even facial expressions can be filmed by mobile phones.

2.4.2 Different Countries Legislate Laws and Regulations to Ban Taking Stealthies with Mobile Phones

In recent years, there have been events of individuals being stealthily photographed, thus their privacy being infringed in different countries. In particular, the popularity of mobile phones with cameras makes it easier to take stealthies, and the places of taking stealthies have gone from bathroom or bedroom in the past to public places like fitness centers and hotels.

Mobile phones with cameras may also become tools to steal business secrets. Given that mobile phones with cameras are highly concealing, a company’s important drawings and samples may be stealthily shot and leaked in a few seconds. It has almost become an unwritten rule in the retailing industry that shopping malls forbid photo-taking. However, in the face of mobile phones with cameras, the rule has become almost powerless.

To promote sales, mobile phone manufacturers compete against one another on mobile phones’ photographing technology. On the one hand, the photographing technology of mobile phones is becoming increasingly improved, while on the other, it makes taking stealthies more convenient. First, cameras are more and more hidden. They may be on the back of mobile phones at the beginning, but they are now on the clamshell or the axis; secondly, according to market surveys, consumers are more and more interested in mobile phones with the photographing function. Manufacturers therefore highlight mobile phones with the HD photographing function.

It is very difficult to investigate or collect evidence on the infringing or illegal, even criminal behavior of taking stealthies. It is suggested to restrain the scope of use of mobile phones with cameras. In some places, mobile phones with cameras have to be regarded as cameras. Therefore, in places where photography is prohibited, the use of mobile phones with cameras should be prohibited, too.

2.4.3 Analysis of the Motives of Taking Stealthies

2.4.3.1 For Excitement

Seeking excitement has become a big motive of taking stealthies. More and more photos, which claim to be “photographed secretly” and involve privacy, attract cybercitizens who also seek excitement, and are searched much more. The malicious cycle has caused more and more habitual offenders or lechers who do it.

2.4.3.2 For Blackmailing and Extortion

Taking stealthies for blackmailing or extortion purpose will cause great harms to the parties involved. As smartphone cameras are becoming more capable, the phenomenon of taking stealthies with smartphone cameras for blackmailing and extortion purpose is popular on mobile phones.

2.4.3.3 Psychological Problems

The motives of taking stealthies can be classified into three: blackmailing, psychopathy and aimless curiosity. If the aims is blackmail, taking stealthies is the same as kidnapping in nature, only they are two different means. Taking stealthies can be explained from its motives to the behavior itself, but is against the widely acknowledged moral standards. If it is metaphrenia, we have to see if one takes stealthies for sexual purpose, that is, for sexual satisfaction with some improper means like taking stealthies of others’ private body parts with a mobile phone. It is difficult to define the third motive.

As for the ones who are stealthily photographed, they mainly have two reactions: to make concessions to avoid troubles and be unwilling to make it public; or to bravely report it to the police and bring the criminal to justice. In the psychological perspective, the former ones believe in external control, and feel that events are mainly determined by external factors, but can’t be affected by themselves; and the latter ones believe in internal control, have a great sense of self control, and believe that, with efforts, they can resolve problems, so they are usually optimistic and active.

In China, anyone who takes stealthies of people’s privacy will be detained by the public security organ. The Law of the PRC on Penalties for Administration of Public Security, which was put to practice on March 1, 2006, clearly provides, a person who peeps or secretly takes photos (including with mobile phones) of another person’s bedroom, bathroom or any other private places, or eavesdrops the privacy of another person shall be detained for not more than five days or be fined not more than 500 yuan; if the circumstances are relatively serious, he shall be detained for not less than five days but not more than ten days and may, in addition, be fined not more than 500 yuan; if one is secretly photographed in public by another person with a mobile phone, the one may request the person who takes stealthies to delete the stealthies, or the one may dial 110 to report it to the police.

2.5 Mobile Phone Viruses

Computer viruses are so familiar to us, but mobile phone viruses did not appear until recently. We may define mobile phone viruses as a new type of viruses which—by infecting mobile phones on the platforms of mobile communications network and computer network and in the form of short messages with viruses—work as computer viruses to attack mobile phones and cause mobile phone failures. As a matter of fact, mobile phone viruses are even more harmful than traditional computer viruses. Mobile phone is an instant messaging tool that integrates the functions of emails, individual multi-functional information management tools and instant chat software. The trust among mobile phone users is greater than that among cybercitizens. Therefore, if a virus on the Internet has a mobile phone version, it is far more disastrous than network viruses.

2.6 Other Problems Brought About by Mobile Phones

2.6.1 Mobile Phone Ringtones or Mobile Phone Talk May Cause Noise Pollution in Public Places

Mobile phone ringtones are becoming new sources of noise pollution in urban life. In China, a country of ancient civilization and etiquette, mobile phones usually ring out suddenly in libraries, theaters, music halls, classrooms and other public places. Some people answer their phones loudly without any consideration of those around them, which is really intolerable.

2.6.2 Mobile Phone Addiction

China now has 1.3 billion mobile phone users. A recent survey by CCTV indicates that 76% of the interviewees showed that they would feel at a loss, even “at a great loss” without a mobile phone.

2.6.3 Road Safety

It has become widely known that using mobile phones may affect road safety.

2.6.4 Environment Protection Problem that Is Brought About by Mobile Phones

As people’s living standards are increasingly improved, a mobile phone has become a communications tool that is integral in people’s day-to-day life. However, the rapid and constant upgrading of e-technology and continuously updated and expanded social demands for mobile phone functions enable people to discard or eliminate old mobile phones more frequently. If the discarded or eliminated old mobile phones are not properly disposed of, they will cause great damages to human health and environment security. The cadmium in the battery of an old mobile phone can pollute 60,000 liters of water, an amount that can fill three standard Olympic Games swimming pools.

3 WeChat

3.1 Development of WeChat

WeChat is a free application that was launched by Tencent on January 21, 2011 to provide instant messaging service for smartphones. It enables the users to send texts, pictures, video and audio clips rapidly through smartphones, tablet PCs and web pages. WeChat also provides public platforms, moments, and information push functions. Users may shake their mobile phones, search numbers or people nearby, scan a 2D code to add new friends or follow public platforms. WeChat shares contents in the form of WeChat moments.

WeChat is not the first mobile Internet instant messaging tool in China, and its concept of design wasn’t original, either, but it learned from Kik, an instant messaging software product launched by Canadian company Kik Interactive.

Users may contact their friends through WeChat in various ways similar to short messaging or multimedia messaging. The software of WeChat is free of charge, and not a dime will be charged for using any of its functions, and the network traffic fee will be collected by network operators.

3.2 Dissemination Advantages of WeChat

WeChat is a representative product of the mobile Internet. Mobile Internet (MI) is an emerging form of business to get businesses or services through smart mobile terminals and via mobile and wireless ways of communication. It combines mobile communications with the Internet.

WeChat is changing the way of interpersonal communication quietly and has incomparable advantages over the other media. It is free of charge and, relative to short messaging, its voice and video dissemination functions make both information disseminators and receivers more direct and real, and highly reachable than QQ or email. Communication is more private relative to the microblogging platform. Specifically speaking, WeChat has the dissemination advantages discussed in the following subsections.

3.2.1 Human-Oriented Design, Convenient Operation

On the official website of Tencent, the advertising slogan is “Speedy, novel, convenient—brings to you new experience of thumb communication.” It points out the first convenient place of WeChat: “Short messaging that speaks.” It is not complicated, and it simply requires the users to press some button on the mobile phone screen when dialoguing, and say what they want to say. Simple operation wins the users and greatly extends the base of WeChat users.

3.2.2 Multimedia Dissemination

WeChat supports real-time delivery of texts, pictures, audio and video clips, and displays the contents disseminated in an omnibearing and three-dimensional way to make the information forms and structure change substantially and satisfy the audience with different habits of reading or watching.

That smartphones develop and soon become popular gives mobile phone media, which takes the smartphone terminal as the main carrier, enormous development space. WeChat has diversified modes of dissemination like voices, texts, pictures and video clips, providing technical supports and serving as a dissemination platform for media dissemination.

3.2.3 Open System for Free Use

WeChat is almost free of charge, so it is cost-effective.

3.2.4 High User Stickiness

WeChat can be bound to QQ, QQ mailbox and QQ Music. Users can log in QQ directly and add QQ friends to WeChat friends, and receive offline information. All these advantages increase user stickiness and popularize WeChat to a wider scope.

3.2.5 Two-Way and Interactive Dissemination Entities

From the communication perspective, WeChat dissemination is mainly point-to-point interpersonal dissemination, and is two-way and interactive.

The dissemination entities of WeChat, namely the user groups, are accurate. WeChat mainly relies on the smartphone mobile platform and, based on the platform of Tencent, mobile phone QQ users are the main force of WeChat. Besides selecting information receivers from QQ friends, users may also select information receivers from mobile phone contacts. Two-way communication easily occurs between WeChat information disseminators and receivers.

Given that WeChat information disseminators and receivers are mainly from QQ friends and WeChat users’ mobile phone contacts, WeChat information disseminators and receivers are close. The main function of WeChat is making voice calls, which are kind of like phone calls. From the angle of users’ psychology and habits, chatting verbally will make the relationship between the disseminators and the receivers more intimate. WeChat information disseminators and receivers are mainly relatives, close friends, friends and colleagues, determining that both sides are even more interactive in conveying and feeding information back through the media.

3.2.6 Disseminated Content is Private and Instant

Given the intimate interpersonal relationship between information disseminators and receivers, the contents of communication through WeChat are even more private. WeChat integrates the functions of QQ and microblogging, and its release of contents is instant. As long as a user is online, he can rapidly receive and respond to news. Besides, WeChat supports offline QQ information receipt, so it is more rapid in messaging.

3.2.7 Dissemination Channels Are the Integration of Multimedia Platforms for Co-sharing

WeChat maximizes the use of all functions of smartphones. As an advantageous platform for co-sharing, it basically covers all communication tools that people use daily.

3.2.8 WeChat Builds an Omnibearing and Three-dimensional Social Network for Its Users

WeChat takes close interpersonal relationship as the main social relationship. As mobile phone-based communication software, it is cored with individuals’ interpersonal relationships and produces and conveys information through close and weak relationships. The social circles of WeChat users can be divided into acquaintances, 1000 m-circle friends and strangers. Acquaintances mean close-quarters social circle and a close interpersonal relationship, while 1000 m-circle friends and strangers represent medium-distance and long-distance social circles. These three social circles indicate that WeChat’s moments are delivered from acquaintances to strangers. WeChat build an omnibearing and three-dimensionsl social network by fully covering three cross-sections. People can allocate their energy in social interactions in a more accurate way as needed.

However, the scope of WeChat users is narrow. Since the most basic relationship in WeChat is based on “friends,” “relatives” and “colleagues” in real life, the frequency of online social interactions tends to be the same as that of offline social interactions in the real society. On the whole, acquaintances have more frequent interactions than strangers. However, the two-way interpersonal relationship inevitably leads to a narrow scope of users of network public opinion, and the scope of social interaction of an ordinary person is basically kept at a size of hundreds. What’s more, WeChat also limits the functions of public platforms, so it restrains large-scale dissemination, making the scope of users even more restrained.

3.2.9 Diffused and Accurate Dissemination Effect

The simple diffusion ability of one-to-many dissemination: First, the WeChat public accounts have the basic broadcasting ability, and WeChat provides its users with the function to follow WeChat public accounts. Some “big WeChat public accounts” may have tens of thousands of followers and can realize simple broadcasting function. Second, WeChat moments have gradually become new platforms for sharing. Different from the open information sharing of microblogging, WeChat moments are information that is shared among acquaintances, and a fully consolidated relationship chain. Information that a WeChat user sends to WeChat moments can be shared by all of such user’s WeChat friends, thus it realizes one-to-many information diffusion.

The point-to-point accurate dissemination ability: WeChat mainly supports point-to-point interpersonal dissemination, which makes the information arrival rate almost 100%. WeChat’s main functions of voice chat and point-to-point communication are like live broadcasting. Expressing feelings verbally helps better understand the mind of both the disseminator and the receiver and bring mutual relationship closer. In accurate WeChat social circles, both sides of communication have a close interpersonal relationship, and the information conveyed and responded to is true and accurate.

All in all, WeChat has changed people’s way of life.

There is the advertising slogan on the official website of WeChat, which reads “WeChat, a way of life.” The emergence of new information dissemination media led by WeChat has changed people’s way of life and existence, built an omnibearing and three-dimensional social network for the users which covers people from acquaintances to strangers, while meeting people’s emotional demands.

3.3 Problems of WeChat

3.3.1 Information Overload

WeChat information overload mainly refers to the problem of junk information that may be caused by information release. Information is released on WeChat through real-time push so that WeChat users do not miss any information. However, like spam, if WeChat information push is abused, it will weaken user experience and unavoidably harass the customers. Meanwhile, many traditional media expect to expand their influence through WeChat, so they try WeChat public accounts. However, if a WeChat user follows a number of WeChat public accounts, and the media push highly similar content every day, it will make the user impatient, even disgusted. For WeChat users, overloaded information becomes junk information.

3.3.2 Privacy Protection

Although WeChat protects its users’ privacy by setting functions such as supporting the approval of requests for adding friends and visibility of WeChat moments to different groups, there are cases of using WeChat to conduct illegal activities in the society. WeChat involves users’ personal data and privacy which may be leaked if not properly protected or managed. For example, contacts and backup files in the phone may not have safety setting or be properly protected. Besides, when WeChat users use LBS functions to extend their interpersonal relationship, there is the problem of possible leakage of personal information.

3.4 WeChat Diversifies Opinion Leaders

In daily life, there are people who can influence others by disseminating information, and they are known as opinion leaders. Studies show that opinion leaders’ access frequency and intensity to newspapers, magazines, TV programs and broadcasting are far greater than those of ordinary people. Therefore, in mass dissemination, information does not “flow” directly to the general audience, but needs to pass the intermediate link of opinion leaders, that is, “from mass dissemination to opinion leaders, and then to the general audience.” That is two-step dissemination.

After the emergence of new media, the “opinion leaders” no longer need the aid of mass dissemination. It provides more convenient means of dissemination for the “opinion leaders.” It is safe to say that new media contributes to the emergence of We Media. As long as one has the discourse say and information, he is a media that attracts followers and then has influence. WeChat, as a good We Media platform, attracts more We Media people to join. Equal discourse right, simple operation and an open platform contribute to the emergence of more and more “opinion leaders” with different occupations from different social strata. Opinion leaders are even more diversified.

3.5 WeChat Integrates Interpersonal Dissemination, Group Dissemination and Mass Dissemination

The original mode of information dissemination was one-to-one. It is typical interpersonal dissemination. Interpersonal dissemination, as the original and typical form of human dissemination activities, has the following prominent characteristic: in the dissemination process, both the disseminators and the audience are individuals, not the masses, and they don’t involve organizations or groups. Interpersonal dissemination is in nature an activity of individuals exchanging spiritual information. The quality of the exchange of spiritual information to a great extent depends on its media.

WeChat dissemination integrates instant mass dissemination, group dissemination and interpersonal dissemination into one. WeChat dissemination mostly covers good friends in mobile phone contacts, so it is group dissemination. Personalized dissemination gives WeChat the advantages of mass dissemination and interpersonal dissemination and enables it to break through the limitations of the two combined. WeChat at the mobile terminal not only makes communication more instant, its multiple ways of communication make information dissemination accurate, profound and extensive. Information release and receipt among phone contacts turn from static to dynamic, and contacts have the ability of one-step information diffusion, and the forms of dissemination are even more personalized and automatic.

3.6 Comparison of WeChat and Microblogging

Although microblogging and WeChat are both representatives of We Media, they are different.

3.6.1 Mode of Dissemination: WeChat Highlights Interpersonal Dissemination and Group Dissemination; Microblogging Highlights Mass Dissemination

WeChat highlights interpersonal dissemination and group dissemination, that is, WeChat is “one-to-one” and point-to-point dissemination and the target groups are more targeted. WeChat involves roughly three modes of dissemination: dissemination among good friends, dissemination through WeChat moments and information receipt. “Dissemination among good friends” refers to point-to-point two-way dissemination between users who add mobile phone contacts and QQ friends as their WeChat friends. The relationship between both sides of dissemination is stable in such mode of dissemination which is kind of like mobile phone messaging.

“Dissemination through WeChat moments” means that WeChat users receive their WeChat friends’ moments, or send their own, and simply comment the moments on the mobile phone. The scope of dissemination is relevant to the number of their good friends. WeChat “moments” are defined as private picture sharing and are limited to mutually followed “WeChat friends.” Because of their privacy, WeChat moments may receive “Thumb up” or “Comment,” but WeChat does not support the forwarding of WeChat moments. So it is difficult to form large-scale dissemination.

“Information receipt” means that WeChat users receive news from the website of Tencent or information from WeChat public accounts, and may forward them to their WeChat friends or share them in their moments. However, the fact that the system releases two pieces of news everyday greatly limits the dissemination capability of WeChat. After receiving information, individuals share the information with their WeChat friends, and that is point-to-point mode of dissemination. After information is shared as WeChat moments, it may be simply commented or thumbed up, but can’t be forwarded. Therefore, WeChat dissemination can’t form multi-layer chain dissemination like microblogging.

Microblogging highlights mass dissemination and the dissemination objects are usually the majority of the uncertain strangers. Microblogging, as a completely open information platform, can realize one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-one and many-to-many interactive dissemination, and information releasers can’t predict information release and receipt.

3.6.2 Users’ Network Social Interaction: WeChat Stresses Interpersonal Relationship, Microblogging Does Not

Seen from users’ network social connections, WeChat takes close interpersonal relationship as the main social relationship. WeChat, as a mobile phone-based communication software product, is centered on individuals’ interpersonal relationship, and produces and conveys information through close and weak interpersonal relationships. Seen from the close interpersonal relationship of WeChat, the most fundamental relationship network is based on such relations as “relatives,” “friends” and “colleagues” in real life. Both sides exchange information in a point-to-point way. Seen from the weak interpersonal relationship, WeChat provides a number of functions and can expand the scope of social interactions. Information conveyed through weak interpersonal relationship can be classified mainly into two types: users’ personal information and information that is released by strange users via apps or public platforms. The scope of WeChat users’ social connections can be divided into three levels: acquaintances, 1000 m-circle friends and strangers, extending from acquaintances to strangers.

Relative to WeChat, microblogging highlights the weak interpersonal relationship, and helps agglomerate people. It is very easy to realize social interactions through microblogging: by clicking “Follow,” one can become a microblogger’s follower, and microblogging’s functions like “Forward, Private Message” also promote mutual communication. What is built after the behavior of clicking “Follow” is an asymmetric interpersonal relationship. Microblogging simplifies social relations, and users can follow other microbloggers at will. They do not need to be identified or approved by the latter as friends. The process therefore facilitates the agglomeration.

3.6.3 Dissemination Effect: WeChat Information Is More Reliable than Microblogging Information

Since the dissemination objects of WeChat are acquaintances, friends and relatives in mobile phone contact, while microblogging highlights mass dissemination and the dissemination objects are usually uncertain strangers, information on WeChat is more reliable than that on microblogging sites.

WeChat and microblogging have completely different genetic attributes—microblogging has more intense dissemination and media attributes, while WeChat has better adhesion and communication experience, and is a private bond of communication.

WeChat dissemination is mainly point-to-point interpersonal dissemination—the dissemination is based on individuals’ social ties and WeChat friends are mostly people whom one contacts in real life; WeChat accounts can be bound to QQ numbers or mobile phone numbers; users make friends in their true names, so the contents disseminated are personal and private in true names. Seen from basic product functions, WeChat, as a product for individuals’ communication for social interaction purpose, naturally highlights close relations. It is mainly a chatting and communication tool for acquaintances. Therefore, users’ privacy is strictly protected. WeChat focuses on point-to-point accurate positioning, which determines that WeChat limits information sharing in terms of product functions. All these lead to WeChat’s poor capability of mass dissemination.

Relative to WeChat, microblogging’s characteristics of being an instant individual media and mass dissemination mechanism are even more prominent. The behavior of “Follow” in microblogging leads to an asymmetric interpersonal relationship, and the process easily expands interpersonal relationship from acquaintances to strangers, and therefore greatly expands individuals’ scope of social interaction. “Followers” may reach hundreds of thousands, even tens of millions. Loose social relationships enable microblogging to conduct one-to-many group communication on a large scale and realize mass dissemination. The one-to-many mode of information release on microblogging sites exponentially magnifies the influence of microblogging, wins it the scale discourse right, and further reacts to traditional media (Table 7.1).

Table 7.1 Comparison of Microblogging and WeChat

4 Management of Mobile Phone Media

With the development of mobile phone media around the globe, many countries have realized the necessity to develop and manage mobile phone media. Mobile phone media has such advantages as spreading information fast, being highly portable and interactive, which are unmatchable by paper media, broadcasting or TV. Like the Internet, mobile phone media, as a new media, has had social influence. The “PX” event in Xiamen was typical. In December 2007, Fujian provincial people’s government and Xiamen municipal people’s government decided to respect people’s will and stop the building of a paraxylene (PX for short) factory by Taiwan-invested Xianglu Group in Haicang District, Xiamen, and moved the project to Gulei Peninsula in Zhangzhou. In “PX event” in Xiamen, new media, including mobile phone media, became a new way and platform for the expression and agglomeration of public will.

However, it is difficult to supervise mobile phone media.

4.1 Difficulties in the Supervision of Mobile Phone Media

4.1.1 Massive Population of Mobile Phone Users

The population of mobile phone users and the pieces of information disseminated through mobile phones are counted by billion. It is impossible to realize comprehensive and timely control of mobile phone media or limit or prohibit the dissemination of some information. Social control seems pale and weak for mobile phone media. The dissemination of SARS-related information through messaging was a very typical example.

4.1.2 Challenges of Cross-Region Dissemination

Mobile phone dissemination is cross-region, it even goes beyond national boundaries. Mobile phone users may easily log in the websites, BBS, microblogs or chat rooms of any country or region in the world through the Internet. So Internet users are extremely scattered in different regions. Illegal and criminal activities online usually affect many countries and regions. When handling such illegal and criminal activities, there are always thorny problems in terms of jurisdiction.

4.1.3 Policies, Laws and Regulations that Lag Behind

The law always lags behind scientific and technological development, and the rapid development of mobile phone dissemination forms a sharp contrast with the less-developed policies, laws and regulations and management. Meanwhile, the management authority does not have sufficient management experience in managing mobile phones, a brand-new media, so management means and methods are updated more slowly than the emergence of new problems. In laws and regulations that are newly introduced, some systems are not operable in reality and will cause conflicts, or they are hard to be realized in execution.

4.2 Problems of Mobile Phone Media in News Dissemination

Relative to traditional media and network media, mobile phone media has natural advantages in news dissemination, and provides the vast user population with more convenient, faster and richer mobile information services. Since mobile phone media is interactive, open and private, and the gatekeeping mechanism is not yet sound, as are the corresponding management policies and system measures, mobile phone media has a lot of problems in the process of disseminating news.

The main problem of mobile phone media in the dissemination of news is that it spreads false news and unhealthy information, which has negative impacts on the development of mobile phone media that cannot be ignored, and may even jeopardize social stability and national security.

Mobile phone media has the problem of disseminating false news. Such news is generally disseminated in two ways: mobile phone websites edit and forward false news from traditional media or network media and disseminate such news; traditional websites send false information to mobile phone users—who subscribe their news information services—through short messaging, and mobile phone users forward and disseminate before diffusing such false information. A lot of false news can cause a sensation in society and, with the great power of interpersonal dissemination, usually would have great social influence.

Take mobile phones for example, in January 1997, the State Council of China promulgated Regulations on Publication Administration, requesting publishing entities to apply the publishing editor system to ensure the legitimacy of publications. The state administration organ in charge of the publication industry allocates book numbers to realize overall control of book publication, which is obviously effective for traditional publication. However, it is challenged when it comes to mobile phones or network publication. The current Regulations on Publication Administration are basically preventative legal regulations, which request the adoption of the publishing editor system to ensure the legitimacy of publications. Besides, the state-level administrative organ in charge of the publication business, by allocating book numbers, realizes overall control of book publication—a publication rule that is highly administrative and well planned. Despite the disadvantages (e.g., the book number allocation system indirectly leads to prevailing trading of book numbers), in the network field, the original set of “game rules” for publication becomes meaningless.

First, the Internet and mobile phones enable people to skip the intermediate link of publishing houses or magazine offices and directly express their opinions (publish their works) on the Internet (including mobile communications network). The network saves the procedure of “editing, printing, binding, transportation, issuance” that is necessary in traditional editing and publication, and users can publish their works conveniently and quickly.

Second, there is no such thing as a book number in online publication, so online publication can fully get rid of the restriction of book numbers. Book numbers have lost micro control of publications. It is a huge shock to the publishing departments that highlight book numbers.

Third, in online publication, the authors do not need to be examined by the editing and publishing department in order to publish their works, so it poses a challenge against the existing publishing editor system.

Fourth, everyone can publish works because there is no threshold of network technology. It becomes extremely difficult to monitor and manage the quality of the published content.

4.3 Problems of Mobile Phone Media Management in China

China is at the fumbling stage regarding the management of mobile phone media. Given its special telecommunications charging system and implicative Chinese culture, the short messaging culture is highly developed in China. Therefore, the management of mobile phone media including mobile phones in China at the present stage is mainly demonstrated by the control of negative short messages.

Mobile phone media can be classified by different standards. According to its relationship with traditional media, mobile phone media can be classified into two types: mobile phone media that rely on traditional media and mobile phone media that do not rely on traditional media. The latter are hard to manage, but represent the mainstream and direction of the industry, while the former may adopt the management mode of traditional media and are less difficult to manage. However, seen from the development of digital new media, the former—restrained by the established management mode, personnel structure, ideological ideas and capital operation—will find it difficult to become the principal part of the emerging industry.

Mobile phone media, as a product of high technology, develops where different industries—including the media and communications—superimpose. It spans a number of industries and has a complicated industrial chain. Its rapid development and the complexity of the problems it causes have surpassed the present cognition and management level. There are therefore problems like unclear management responsibilities, insufficient management references, and weak management capability, as well as problems such as the development of the industry is significantly driven by interests, IP protection is weak, and the ecology of the industry is deteriorated.

The management responsibilities are unclear, and there are supervision blanks. The management of mobile phone media involves different industries and industrial departments, so there are a lot of uncertainties in management.

The management references are insufficient and it lacks laws, regulations and policies. Take mobile phone newspapers for example, what qualifications are needed in order to run a mobile phone newspaper? Does the current print media automatically get such qualifications? Are new entities allowed to run mobile phone newspapers? How to master and guide the contents of mobile phone media? How to ensure copyright of mobile phone media? Mobile phone news websites, mobile phone TV programs and mobile phone novels also meet similar management problems. Laws, regulations and policies on such problems are not yet clear enough, and the system and measures are not yet complete. It is an urgent problem in order to guide healthy development of mobile phone media.

The industry is significantly driven by interests; there are a lot of consumption traps; and unhealthy information flows. Copyright protection is inefficient, and infringement and piracy are serious. Business models are similar, and industrial ecology is deteriorated.

4.4 Policies and Laws on the Management of Mobile Phone Media in Developed Countries

Currently, there are laws and regulations on the mobile communications industry and mobile phone users’ behaviors, but not any law or regulation on the management of mobile phone media.

At present, the country with the most developed mobile phone media in the world is Japan, but Japan relies on industry self-discipline to manage mobile phone media. The nongovernmental industrial associations on mobile phone media in Japan play a crucial role. Given Japan’s special self-discipline culture, its experience in managing mobile phone media would be difficult to transplant to China.

In the United States, Europe, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, and Hong Kong of China, management laws and regulations on the mobile communications industry are complete. However, the whole world is at the initial stage of managing mobile phone media by legislation.

As for noise pollution in public places, which is caused by mobile phone ringtones or phone calls, it is completely a problem of the users’ habits of use and sense of social morality.

The control of mobile phones with cameras—which infringe the right of privacy or steal secrets—actually targets the problem of disseminators’ self-discipline and heteronomy. It is not the mobile phones, but mobile phone users who infringe privacy. Therefore, mobile phone users need to be effectively restrained and controlled in heteronomy. Some countries have realized the seriousness of the problem, so they are restraining the scope of use of such “concealed cameras.”

4.5 Management Measures of Mobile Phone Media

A mobile phone is not only a carrier of person-to-person communication, but also mass media in nature. It involves different industries and industrial departments. It disseminates huge amounts of diversified information, and has high technical conditions and standards and requirements. The release, dissemination and disposal of information through mobile phones are random, short and widely influential, and hard to be controlled by information releasers, disseminators and receivers. Not only enterprises of different categories, but also news media participate in the business of news dissemination through mobile phones. Regarding such emerging media, there have not been relevant domestic management systems or laws or regulations. A major topic to be studied and settled is how to strengthen the supervision and management of mobile phone media businesses, especially the content and information therein, respect and protect intellectual properties, and prevent the dissemination of illegal and unhealthy information on the Internet.

4.5.1 Ways of Management of Mobile Phone Media

In the development of mobile phone media, the significance of the government cannot be ignored, because the government not only manages mobile phone media, but also promotes the development of new media. The government has the responsibility to purify the content of mobile phone media and ensure the security of mobile phone network so as to promote vigorous development of such emerging media.

Control and freedom are inseparable, like both sides of a coin. But when developing the control strategies, the reality of mobile phone media must be taken into consideration and the measures for controlling traditional media are inapplicable here.

That the mobile phone media is portable, open, free and interactive, and costs less makes “noise” dissemination technically possible. The characteristic of mobile phone media breaking through region and time constraints makes it more difficult to control mobile phone media. For traditional mass media, laws, regulations and policies can be developed to control media stance, and ensure that it serves the mainstream ideology of the nation and people’s interests. For mobile phone media, some visible means of control are hardly workable, and it is difficult for a nation to supervise the huge amount of information and large number of users in a comprehensive and timely way.

At present, mobile phone media may be controlled and regulated in the following three aspects.

4.5.1.1 Strengthening the Development of Laws and Regulations on Mobile Phone Media

At present legislation on mobile phone media has just been initiated in countries throughout the world. Legislation is just an issue of form, and the greater difficulty is the fact of obstacles against law enforcement. How to monitor information dissemination in mobile phone media, investigate and collect evidence on facts that are against the law, how to maintain coordination among different departments are new tasks to be resolved by the law-enforcement departments.

4.5.1.2 Strengthening the Code of Ethics of Mobile Phone Media

Ethics plays its role through public opinion, customs and beliefs, while laws play their role through deterrence and punishment. As the second space of survival for modern people, mobile phone media should have its own system of ethics.

4.5.1.3 Technical Management

To overcome effectively the negative effects produced by mobile phone media, besides strengthening government supervision and the control of mobile phone media, conducting legal management of mobile phone media and advocating civilized network ethics, there are also technical measures, that is, technical control can be further intensified with technology.

4.5.2 Respecting the Special Development Rules of Mobile Phone Media, Innovating on the Principles of Management of Mobile Phone Media

4.5.2.1 Respecting the Special Rules of Mobile Phone Media, and Establishing Correct Legislation Principles

Mobile phone media has its special industrial development rules and technical characteristics. Ostrich policies have to be avoided when developing mobile phone media-related policies, laws and regulations.

When managing mobile phone media—the extension of network media—by legislation, China’s experience in and lessons learned from network media management may be referred to. Mobile phone media goes beyond regional and national boundaries, so we should take into consideration international conventions, and learn from past experience and lessons.

The principle of policy development and legislation should meet and promote the development of the mobile phone media industry, and put equal emphasis on regulation and development. Mobile phone media can be classified by different standards. According to its relationship with traditional media, mobile phone media can be classified into two types: mobile phone media that rely on traditional media and mobile phone media that do not rely on traditional media. The former are hard to manage, but represent the mainstream and direction of the industry, while the latter may adopt the management mode of traditional media, and are less difficult to manage. However, seen from the development of digital new media, the latter—restrained by the established management mode, personnel structure, ideological ideas and capital operation—are hard to become the principal part of the emerging industry. China’s policies, laws and regulations should not restrain the former’s development.

One problem China is facing now in the supervision of new media is that China highlights “regulation,” but ignores development. Laws, regulations and policies should promote the development of the media industry, but in fact, many policies, laws and regulations are restraining its development.

There are no national boundaries on the Internet. Excessive supervision of local video websites may push some cybercitizens to overseas websites, dragging down the development speed of domestic video industry. Obviously, simply transferring the methods of managing traditional media like TV and films to digital media does no good to its development.

Mobile phone dissemination does not have any threshold. Of the hundreds of millions of mobile phone users, anyone can become the disseminator. Therefore, it is difficult to manage mobile phone dissemination with the traditional publication examination and approval system. Given the special rules of mobile phone media, it is suggested to separate enterprises’ and individuals’ behavior in mobile phone media, and adopt the “registration system + investigation and punishment system” to manage mobile phone media.

Since the new-type digital mode of publication led by network media and mobile phone media is the development direction of the entire news publication industry, it is a progress and an inevitable thing that paper media declines. Therefore, in legislation, traditional publishing houses should be encouraged to use new media technology, and actively devote themselves to network media and mobile phone media activities to promote the upgrade of China’s publishing industry.

4.5.2.2 Paying Attention to Intellectual Property Protection

There are unsatisfying places in present network dissemination legislation and law enforcement, like network copyright protection. On the Internet (including mobile communications network), intellectual property (IP) infringement cases are common. An author needs to pay a high time and economic cost to protect his/her legitimate rights and interests on the Internet, and faces a high risk of losing the lawsuit, because IP infringement on the Internet is costless, concealing, rapid and global, and it is hard to collect criminal evidence. In short, infringement is easy, but right safeguarding is really difficult. In mobile phone media, if the problem of copyright is not properly solved, it may completely destroy the mobile phone media industry.

4.5.2.3 Enhancing the Operability of Policies, Laws and Regulations

Everything has two sides. It pays a price to manage the mobile phone media, and the stricter the management is, the higher the cost will be. Cost here refers to social cost in the broad sense. Therefore, the cost and efficiency of management of mobile phone media need to be balanced.

As a result of modern science and technology, mobile phone media in itself is neutral. Both the good effects and the negative effects are “made” by people who participate therein. Mobile phone media can change people, and vice versa. We just can’t stop using mobile phone media or deem it as monstrous only because it has defects.