DouYu CEO arrested on suspicion of running a casino

Chinese game-centric livestreaming platform DouYu’s CEO and chairman Shaojie Chen has been arrested by the Chengdu police on suspicion of running a casino.

According to a statement from DouYu, the company was informed on 20 November that Chen was arrested by the Chengdu police on or around 16 November.  

The company has not received any official notice of the investigation against Chen or the reasons for his apparent arrest and it cannot comment on the nature or expected timeline of subsequent legal proceedings, the statement read.  

“Chen’s ongoing detention and any subsequent related legal proceedings and enforcement actions against the parties involved may have a material adverse impact on the company’s reputation, business and results of operations,” the statement said. 

The company said it maintains normal operation of its business and remains committed to upholding regulatory compliance on its platform, stating that the company’s management will supervise the business operations and work on contingency plans in response to Chen’s arrest and related investigations. 

The Chengdu police also said on theChinese social media platform WeChatthat a 39-year-old man surnamed Chen was arrested on suspicion of operating a casino. Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua also reshared the police statement confirming that the DouYu chief had been arrested. 

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to DouYu for a statement.  

Headquartered in Wuhan, China, DouYu is a game-centric livestreaming platform in China. DouYu operates its platform on both computers and mobile apps to bring users access to immersive and interactive games and entertainment livestreaming, a wide array of video and graphic contents, as well as opportunities to participate in community events and discussions.   

However, back in May, the Chinese cyberspace watchdog conducted an onsite inspection in May to look into the alleged pornography and “vulgar” content related to DouYu. 

In fact, China has tightened its grip of internet content over the past few years. Back in May, the cyberspace watchdog closed more than 4,200 sites and deleted 55 apps from app stores for various breaches in Q1 2023, including providing unauthorised news services. 

Don't miss: China cyberspace watchdog to tighten grip on social media comments

The country is also planning to review every social media comment under its newly proposed regulation released on 17 June 2022, drawing concerns over the freedom of speech in the country, said SCMP.

China's cyberspace watchdog published the draft rules on 17 June 2022, which direct platforms to hire a content moderation team, “commensurate with the scale of the service”, to inspect all user comments and possibly filter inappropriate ones before they go public. The comments that fall into the scope of inspection include original posts, replies and real-time comments that appear on top of a video, known as “bullet chats”.

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