A South Korean law that came into effect at the beginning of April has had a deep effect on Google. Under the law, sites with over 100,000 users a day have to confirm the identity of people posting comments or uploading through personal information, generally real names or resident registration numbers, according to The Hankyoreh.
To help keep their users anonymous, Google has closed the comments and video upload sections of YouTube in South Korea. Site users can register an ID and remain anonymous. There has been no blocking of content in South Korea.
In a statement issued in Korea and translated into English by The Hankyoreh, Rachel Whetstone, VP of global communications and public affairs at Google, said:
"We concluded in the end that it is impossible to provide benefits to Internet users while observing this country’s law because the law does not fall in line with Google’s principles."
