There has been enough evidence to prove that the operator of a controversial Singaporean live-streaming application has been running their service without a legitimate permit in Vietnam, while it was also discovered having a close relationship with a Chinese social media platform.
According to Vo Dan Mach, a lawyer from the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, despite having a representative office in Vietnam, the local branch of the Bigo Live app has not been granted a license for establishment and operation.
The operator could be fined VND5 million (US$225) to VND10 million ($449) for that as per Vietnamese law, Mach said, adding that the firm would be required to return all the profit gained by its illicit operation.
The company will also face many difficulties registering for a business permit in the future, the lawyer continued.
Vietnamese authorities could refuse to let the operator of Bigo Live run the service in the country due to its previous violations as well as potential offenses in the coming time, he elaborated.
Bigo Live had already sparked public concern after many users took advantage of the live-streaming service to broadcast explicit content and images of themselves.
During an interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on June 26, Le Quang Tu Do, deputy chief of the Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information under the Ministry of Information and Communications, said that Bigo Live showed signs of online trade, which is against Vietnamese law.
Meanwhile, a probe by Tuoi Tre showed that Bigo Technology, parent company of the live-streaming service, has a close connection with YY, an increasingly successful China-based social media site.
YY’s CEO David Xueling is also the founder of Bigo Technology.
In 2014, YY Corporation participated in WeiHui, a smartphone app that offers free call services, which was later given to Bigo Technology.
YY currently holds 27.78 percent of Bigo Technology while a financial report in 2015 indicated that its investors had channeled about $15.6 million into Bigo.
Many financial experts considered the transaction between the two firms rather special, as YY had managed to transfer a part of its asset to Bigo without having to pay any tax.