Many Chinese websites warned over porn

BEIJING: Dozens of websites in China have been warned they will be shut down if they do not stop offering pornographic games, state media said Thursday, as the government moves to tighten control over the web.

Authorities have ordered 55 websites to delete obscene video games and games for mobile phones or have their Internet connection severed, Xinhua news agency said, citing the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP).

Those who ignore the warning will be "held legally accountable", it added.

It is the fourth time this year that the government has released such a list.

Beijing launched a campaign late last year to crack down on pornography published on the Internet and mobile phones.

Between November and March authorities closed more than 140,000 websites in China, which has the world's largest online population of more than 400 million.

Emboldened Chinese web users have made the Internet a new forum to, among other things, express opinions in a freewheeling way rarely seen in the strictly government-controlled traditional media.

However, Beijing operates a vast system of web censorship, sometimes referred to as the "Great Firewall of China".

It blocks access to any content deemed unacceptable, ranging from pornography to political dissent.