Big tech boys take aim at Singapore rules
Singapore's move to tighten regulation of news web sites, already under fire from bloggers and human rights groups, has attracted criticism from an unexpected quarter - large internet firms with a big presence in the city-state who say the new rules will hurt the industry.
Web giants Facebook, eBay, Google and Yahoo have said the revised rules "have negatively impacted Singapore's global image as an open and business-friendly country".
The comments, made in a letter to Singapore's minister of communications and information by the Asia Internet Coalition, an industry body, are the first sign that Singapore's success in wooing major players to its shores is not assured. Google, eBay, Facebook and Yahoo all have a major presence in the city-state. Google said separately it was concerned about the long-term implications of the regulation - especially for local internet entrepreneurs who it said now faced greater uncertainty and legal risk.
