Streaming rules wipe $1bn from Weibo market cap

Chinese regulators have ordered three major internet platforms to halt all video and audio streaming services, as the country ramps up its control over online content. Among the three was microblogging site Sina Weibo, which lost more than $1bn in market capitalization in New York trading Thursday, the Financial Times reports. Nasdaq-listed shares in the Twitter-like microblogging service closed down 6.1% at $72.25, bringing the company’s market capitalization to $15.8bn, from $16.8bn at the previous close. They had fallen as much as 10.8% in morning trade. In February, Sina Weibo surpassed Twitter in market capitalization, at a valuation of $11.3bn. Often referred to as “China’s Twitter,” Weibo now has 300m active monthly users. In the past year, it has made embedding live streaming video a priority, while shifting away from its traditional blog format. According to China’s media regulator, the three site did not have licenses for streaming content and were not compliant with regulations on “negative speech.”