Yahoo! Finance Singapore, 8 Jul 2013
SINGAPORE—Singapore's government, facing growing disquiet from foreign investors over tightened rules on news websites, on Monday defended the new regulations and downplayed concerns over potential impact on business and Web freedoms.
The comments, made by the information minister in Parliament, came after U.S. Internet giants—including Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc.—said the new rules were hurting Singapore's business-friendly reputation and creating uncertainty for Web entrepreneurs. More than 1,000 citizens staged a protest last month to challenge what they perceived as an attempt to stifle Internet-based news media, often seen as critical of Singapore's government.
The new licensing regime "is not a departure from the 'light-touch' regulatory approach that the government has adopted for the Internet," Yaacob Ibrahim, minister for Communications and Information, told Parliament in response to lawmakers' questions. Full story
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