Following the execution in the last years of government Internet sites like Google, Yahoo! and Facebook on certain user-generated content, this was interpreted by many as the accommodation of Twitter growing concern of various governments on the need to regulate user-generated content social networking sites, and found that in contrast to the "stubborn" position of Google and Facebook.
However, some experts wonder whether the position of Twitter was really different from Google or Facebook. "Google and Facebook have said they would remove the content if ordered by the courts, and Twitter is also saying that you can block tweets if required by the law," one expert said. "When laws are codified, as in Germany and France on the pro-Nazi propaganda, Twitter can block the pro-Nazi proactively tweets. However, in countries like India, where laws are not as specific, this will be done reactively, based on court orders. That's all Twitter is saying. "
In his blog, Twitter said it has added the feature to block content depending on the region because it will go into "countries that have different ideas about the contours of freedom of expression." He cited the example of Germany and France: "Some countries are so different from the ideas that we will not be able to exist there others restrict certain types of content such as France and Germany, banning pro-Nazi content .."
Twitter said if "we are obliged to retain a tweet in a specific country, we will try to let the user know, and clearly marked when the content has been hidden." Also publish detailed information about blocked content on the website Chilling Effects, a joint project of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and law departments of several major U.S. universities.
However, the movement is more likely to be asked of course Twitter plan to enter China, a country with the largest number of Internet users. The service is prohibited in the Asian country since 2009. With its new technology would be able to block tweets that the Chinese government offensives without raising hackles global audience.
Twitter said that so far has not used the new technology. "But if and when they are required to retain a tweet in a specific country, we will try to let the user know, and clearly marked when the content has been hidden," the company said.
Pranesh Prakash, an official of the Center for Internet and Society, called to step into the "balkanization of the web". "The region-specific blocking was already used in the web hosting sites like YouTube and Hulu, where due to the wishes of the owners of copyright many videos are not available in India. Twitter is to extend this technology to their tweets, "he said.
While some governments seek to regulate the web, the demand for specific content filtering and blocking the region has grown. Last month, Google and Facebook asking to filter "objectionable material", the Minister Kapil Sibal Telecommunications said, "We must take care the sensitivity of our people. Cultural ethos is very important to us."
Twitter became a household name in India last year, thousands of demonstrators are used to spread the word about Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement. In countries like Egypt and Tunisia, which was used by the protesters in their fight against oppressive regimes. Prakash added that in the past, the website had resisted attempts to censor tweets. "Last year, when the U.S. government requested detailed information about a user, Twitter challenged in court," he said.
