Authorities in China have launched a campaign to crack down on illegal Olympic broadcasting during the Beijing Olympics.

Any illegal web-casting of Olympic events on video websites will be forbidden. Our reporter Dan Dan brings you the latest development of the campaign.

Reporter:

For people who will be lucky enough to watch an Olympic event on site, surely they want to take a video camera with them to record the exciting moments. However, if they publicize video footage of the games on domestic websites, they might face a penalty up to 100,000 Yuan, or nearly 15,000 U.S. dollars.

The National Copyright Administration and other related departments have made it clear that in order to protect the copyright of the Olympic Games, individuals or units without authorization are not allowed to upload recorded videos or images of the games onto a network.

Xu Chao, a senior official from the administration, said as a member of the International Olympic Committee, China will obey the rules of the Olympic Charter.

"The IOC has its own Olympic Charter. It's just like the constitution of a nation. According to the charter, everything related to the Olympic Games is the property of the committee. That means if one wants to make use of the games, they need authorization."

As internet has become an indispensable part of people's lives, online and mobile videos are also becoming more and more prevalent. These new forms of media have posed new problems for broadcasting the Olympics.

Xu Chao acknowledged that this is the first time in China as well as in the history of the Olympic Games that illegal broadcasting of the Olympic Games through the internet and mobile devices is being regulated.

"This is the first time the IOC has issued broadcasting rights for new media. If there is no regulation on internet or mobile broadcasting, traditional television broadcasting, both cable and wireless, will be greatly affected."

Meanwhile, the National Copyright Administration has set up an office which will carry out 24-hour supervision on the internet to crack down on illegal Olympic broadcastings.

"Besides the sports events, illegal broadcasting of other related activities is also not allowed, such as the opening and closing ceremonies of the Games, testing matches, culture activities, Olympic flame gathering and the torch relay."

The official also encouraged the public to participate in this anti-piracy campaign, by reporting illegal broadcasting through a platform on the administration's website or dialing the anti-piracy hotline.

The National Copyright Administration has so far sent out warnings to more than 20 domestic websites that broadcasted Olympic contents without authorizations.

Dan Dan, CRI news.