The Ministry of Justice is currently reviewing a draft decree amending and supplementing provisions of Decree No. 147/2024 on the management, provision and use of internet services and online information.

Article 16 of the draft proposes adding Clause 9 after Clause 8 of Article 36 of Decree 147/2024/ND-CP, concerning the rights and obligations of users of domestic social networks and foreign social networks providing cross-border services in Vietnam.

Under the proposal, owners of accounts, content channels and community pages, as well as administrators of community groups on social networks - collectively referred to as owners of accounts, channels, pages and groups - would be required to notify the state agency responsible for electronic information of their contact details in writing if the combined number of followers or members across all accounts, content channels, community pages and groups under their management reaches one million or more. The notification would follow Form No. 67 issued together with the decree.

The written notification could be submitted directly, sent by post to the state agency responsible for electronic information, or delivered through other methods permitted by law.

According to Vo Quoc Hung, Growth Director at Tonkin Agency, the proposal represents a positive turning point and an initial step toward establishing a legal framework that brings content creators and highly influential social media pages and channels under clearer regulatory oversight.

The regulation, he said, could encourage greater awareness of the consequences of public statements and greater responsibility for content moderation among creators, as well as individuals and legal entities that own or manage channels and pages in the digital environment.

Hung said such a requirement is necessary given the profound expansion of digital platforms in today’s media landscape. A social media account with one million followers, he noted, can sometimes exert greater influence than a local news organization.

The proposal could address several issues, including ensuring that influential figures assume a corresponding level of social responsibility and discouraging the dissemination of fake or misleading information designed to attract views and engagement, or even cause public anxiety. It could also create a more level playing field for mainstream media, which is subject to stringent regulations and sanctions, while influencers and operators of fan pages with millions of followers can readily generate substantial advertising and sponsorship revenue while facing far fewer regulatory constraints.

Registration could also enable authorities to deal more quickly and easily with accounts, channels, pages and groups that violate regulations because their operators would be clearly identified, avoiding situations in which officials spend considerable time and resources trying to determine who actually owns them.

Sharing a similar view, Nhan Nguyen, who works in digital marketing in Ho Chi Minh City, said the regulation is necessary because some individuals on social media platforms exploit their popularity and disregard ethical or legal boundaries in pursuit of greater fame, sometimes engaging in behavior that has broader social consequences.

Authorities are not always able to monitor and penalize such behavior, he said. Requiring individuals to provide and verify their information could therefore encourage them to take greater responsibility for the content they disseminate on social media.

However, Hung also said the feasibility of the proposal needs careful consideration. If an individual or legal entity deliberately conceals ownership, for example, determining how many social media accounts that person or organization controls - and then calculating the combined number of followers - could be extremely difficult.

Many accounts, pages and channels are currently operated by multi-channel networks, or MCNs, while others are run by anonymous administrators whose identities are unknown. Determining the actual owner can therefore present a significant challenge.

Ultimately, Hung said, even with legislation in place, enforcement would still depend on cooperation from social media platforms. If platforms refuse to cooperate, or provide only limited cooperation, sharing and cross-checking data to establish who owns particular accounts, channels or pages would be extremely difficult. Doing the work manually, meanwhile, would be slow and consume substantial state resources.

Le My