A regulation which sets limit to the amount of online payment affected the business transaction volume of Internet tourist agents. Some sales agent reported their business volume to have decreased by two-thirds on the day the regulation was published.

The regulation, which was issued by China's Central Bank last Sunday, stipulated that without digital certificate or online signature, online payment should not exceed 1,000 yuan for each transaction and the total amount of payment per day should not be higher than 5,000 yuan. The amount of online credit card payment was also restricted as this payment should not exceed the amount of cash withdraw.

"With the new regulation, an air ticket which is over 1,000 yuan should run the payment procedure at least twice, which makes the payment more complicated," said some air ticket sales agent, "as most international air tickets cost higher than 6,000 yuan after fuel surcharge and tax were added, it is almost impossible to buy air tickets online if consumers do not have digital certificate."

A staff member of the TravelSky Technology Limited, who was in charge of online ticket sales, said the new regulation was detrimental to online payment. As air tickets and most tourist products cost relatively high price, the new regulation would not only hit the online ticket sales in aviation industry, it also acted as a blow to online tourism sales and hotel reservation.

(Chinanews.cn November 1, 2005)