Tencent executive accepts 700,000 in bribes, are large corporations becoming hotbeds of corruption?
[4] Compiled from: Red Star News
Case review
[2] In early February this year, Tencent's Anti-Fraud Investigation Department released a list of 22 typical cases of internal violations of the "Tencent Red Line" since the fourth quarter of 2019, along with a list of 37 external companies involved.
[3] One of the notices stated that Zhao Mouwei, Assistant General Manager of the PCG Mobile Commercial Products Department, used his position to seek benefits for suppliers, accepted bribes from suppliers, and repeatedly accepted overseas and domestic trips funded by the suppliers. His actions violated the "Tencent Red Line" and he was dismissed by the company. Additionally, Zhao Mouwei was transferred to public security authorities for suspected criminal activities. However, specific details and amounts were not disclosed.
[4] Public information shows that the PCG business group was established in 2018, responsible for the integrated development of the company's internet platforms and content culture ecosystem, including integrating social platforms like QQ and Qzone, traffic platforms like App Store and browsers, as well as content businesses such as news, video, sports, live streaming, anime, and film, promoting cross-platform and multi-form IP development to create a vast array of high-quality digital content experiences for more users.
[5] On November 4, the Beijing Court Trial Network simultaneously published the first-instance criminal judgment and the second-instance criminal ruling for the case.
[6] The first-instance judgment stated that, upon investigation, from April 2017 to July 2018, the defendant Zhao Mouwei, while working at Tencent Technology (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Tencent") in the Mobile Commercial Products Center, used his position to handle commercial advertising matters for the App Store. During business cooperation with Beijing Wanxiang Xindong Mobile Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Beijing Wanxiang"), he sought benefits for Beijing Wanxiang and accepted free travel services paid for by Yi Mouchuan, then General Manager of Beijing Wanxiang. The investigation found that the total cost of the aforementioned travel amounted to RMB 730,210.
[1] Court Opinion
In the first instance, the court sentenced the defendant Zhao Mouwei for the crime of accepting bribes by a non-state functionary to one year and two months in prison and a fine of 60,000 RMB.
Additionally, the defendant Yi Mouchan was sentenced for the crime of offering bribes to a non-state functionary to nine months in prison and a fine of 20,000 RMB; combined with a previously imposed sentence of three years and six months in prison and a fine of 80,000 RMB, the final sentence was four years in prison and a fine of 100,000 RMB.
The second instance upheld the original judgment.
"Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China"
Article 163
The crime of accepting bribes by a non-state functionary refers to an employee of a company, enterprise, or other unit who, taking advantage of their position, demands or illegally accepts property from others to seek benefits for them, and if the amount is relatively large, they shall be sentenced to up to three years in prison or criminal detention and fined; if the amount is huge or there are other serious circumstances, they shall be sentenced to between three and ten years in prison and fined; if the amount is especially huge or there are other especially serious circumstances, they shall be sentenced to over ten years in prison or life imprisonment and fined.
Employees of companies, enterprises, or other units who, in economic transactions, use their positions to violate state regulations by accepting various forms of kickbacks or handling fees for personal possession shall be punished according to the preceding paragraph.
Personnel engaged in public service in state-owned companies, enterprises, or other state-owned units, and personnel dispatched by state-owned companies, enterprises, or other state-owned units to non-state-owned companies, enterprises, or other units to engage in public service, who commit the acts in the preceding two paragraphs, shall be convicted and punished according to Articles 385 and 386 of this Law.
[1] The author's perspective
Internet enterprises differ from traditional enterprises in their business scope and operational mechanisms, so their internal rule-making also differs. Since internet enterprises have only emerged in the last two decades and truly risen in just a few decades, and current internet policies and development trends are vastly different from before, there are no successful models for internal regulation to follow, and they must proceed by trial and error.
Currently, the anti-corruption rules and regulations of internet enterprises mainly target two categories: first, internal senior management and employees, and second, third-party partners. However, there are two main shortcomings in current internet enterprise anti-corruption regulations: first, the content is not comprehensive or detailed, and second, they cannot fully integrate business operations to identify compliance risk points. This not only tests the capability of senior management but also reflects the professional competence of the legal team. Thus, internal anti-corruption in enterprises requires not only strict rule-making from a holistic perspective but also thorough implementation. As a key area of new development in China, the internet industry cannot afford internal management chaos; otherwise, how can it support the national economy?
