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This article reports on the move of major business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the European-American Business Council, the Information Technology Industry Council and others, to send a letter to Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao calling on him to drop an order requiring computer makers to ship personal computers (PCs) pre-loaded with Web-filtering software. The Chinese government has set July 1, 2009 as deadline for computer makers to comply with the order. Computer makers are concerned about the effect of the software on their products.

The article reports that some Internet users in China opposed the plan of the government to require computer makers to include the GreenFam-Youth Escort filtering software. The software was developed in order to help parents keep their children away from pornography on the Internet. Foreign industry executives and Internet-freedom advocates asserted that the censorship power of the government could be expanded by the software.

The article reports that computer makers and researchers are evaluating the Green Dam-Youth Escort Internet filtering software developed by Jinhui Computer System Engineering Co. in China. The government has ordered that all computers sold in the country be installed with the Internet filtering software. It is noted that the software has the ability to empower the government to control information accessed by Internet users.