Marriott website shut down in China after listing Taiwan and Tibet as ‘countries’

Summary

Marriott's website and app were suspended in China for a week after listing Taiwan and Tibet as countries in a customer survey, leading to an investigation for violating Chinese cybersecurity and advertising laws.

Abstract

The Marriott hotel chain faced repercussions in China when its global survey, which listed Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet, and Macau as separate countries, was deemed to have violated Chinese regulations. The Shanghai Cyberspace Administration ordered Marriott to suspend its Chinese website and app for one week. The company's actions were seen as a serious violation of Chinese laws and were considered to have hurt the feelings of the Chinese people. Additionally, Marriott's Marriott Rewards Twitter account exacerbated the situation by liking a tweet from a Tibetan separatist account, leading to further public and official backlash. Marriott has since apologized and is cooperating with the investigation, acknowledging respect for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and has taken corrective measures including revising the survey and investigating the social media incident.

Opinions

The Chinese authorities view Marriott's actions as a significant breach of national regulations and sentiments.
Chinese netizens and the tourism ministry expect other industry groups to learn from Marriott's mistake and adhere to China's political stance.
Marriott's social media activity, including the inadvertent endorsement of a separatist tweet, suggests a lack of oversight or understanding of the political sensitivities in the region.
The incident has likely damaged Marriott's reputation in China, a significant market for the hotel chain, and may have financial and operational repercussions.
Marriott's swift apology and corrective actions indicate a recognition of the gravity of the situation and an attempt to mitigate the damage to its business interests in China.

Shanghai Cyberspace Administration has ordered the hotel group to suspend its website and Chinese app for one week in penance

The website and app of the American hotel chain Marriott has been suspended in China for one week over a sloppily-worded survey that was sent out earlier this week to rewards club members.

The global survey listed Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet, and Macau as separate “countries,” a political faux pas that was spotted by Chinese netizens, before also gaining the attention of Chinese authorities.

On Thursday evening, the Shanghai office of China’s Cyberspace Administration announced that it had ordered Marriott to shut down its Chinese website and the Chinese version of its smartphone app for one week, adding that the hotel group was under investigation for violating Chinese cybersecurity and advertising law.

Marriott had “seriously violated” Chinese regulations and “hurt the feelings of the Chinese people,” the state internet watchdog said.

Meanwhile, China’s tourism ministry has voiced its support for the investigation and said that other groups in the industry should take lessons from the incident.

The hotel chain managed to hurt even more Chinese feelings after netizens noticed that the company’s Marriot Rewards Twitter account had “liked” a tweet posted by a Tibetan separatist account named “Friends of Tibet,” which congratulated Marriott for listing Tibet as a country.

Marriott has since apologized profusely for this pair of political missteps, and has attempted to distance itself from separatist elements.

“Marriott International respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China,” the company tweeted. “We don’t support separatist groups that subvert the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China. We sincerely apologize for any actions that may have suggested otherwise.”

The company has promised to cooperate with Chinese authorities in their investigation, has corrected the wording of the online survey, and has launched its own investigation into the “careless” like. In other words, things aren’t looking great for Marriott’s social media manager and graphics intern.

Marriott operates around 300 hotels and resorts in the Greater China region, which includes mainland China, along with Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet, and Macau.