China’s government has proposed strict new limits on car hailing apps’ use of migrants as drivers in major cities, in a blow to Didi Chuxing and potentially to other Chinese internet groups.

中国政府针对网约车服务在大城市使用外来务工人员作为驾驶员提议了严格的新限制，此举打击了滴滴出行(Didi Chuxing)，潜在还将打击中国其他互联网集团。

Migrants from rural China have fuelled the business models of some of the country’s largest internet companies including Alibaba, Meituan-Dianping, as well as Didi Chuxing.

来自中国农村及小城镇的务工人员一直推动中国一些最大的互联网公司的商业模式，包括阿里巴巴(Alibaba)、美团点评(Meituan-Dianping)以及滴滴出行。

They all rely on low-paid drivers and couriers to provide services such as ecommerce, ride hailing and food delivery.

它们都依靠低薪的司机和快递员提供电子商务、网约车和送餐等服务。

Thanks to the proliferation of cheap online-to-offline offerings, Chinese smartphone users can order virtually any service delivered to their door, from taxis to takeout food, and this has helped drive rapid adoption¹ of the mobile internet in China.

得益于廉价线上到线下(O2O)服务的大量涌现，中国智能手机用户可以订购几乎任何送货上门的服务，从出租车到外卖食品，这帮助推动了中国移动互联网的快速普及。

But that practice has clashed with the central government’s recent efforts to limit urban migration².

但这种做法与中央政府最近限制城市移民的努力存在抵触。

A new set of draft laws rolled out in China’s top-tier cities would require all drivers for car-hailing services to have a residency permit — known as a hukou — in the city where they drive.

中国一线城市出台的一套新的法律草案将要求网约车服务的所有驾驶员拥有本地户口。

Didi has publicly called for a rethink of the regulations, saying the current draft will force the majority of cars and drivers currently serving the public on Didi Chuxing to quit.

滴滴公开呼吁重新思考这些规定，称目前的草案将使得绝大多数滴滴平台上目前服务老百姓的车辆和司机被迫退出。

The new rules would decimate the ranks of the more than 15m drivers currently registered on Didi and could presage³ similar limitations on migrants working for other internet industries.

新规则将使目前在滴滴注册的1500多万驾驶员大批失去资格，并且可能预示在其他互联网行业打工的外来务工人员面临类似限制。

Pang⁴ Kun, a lawyer based in Guangdong province who focuses on public interest and labour-related issues in China, says: The internet service industry as a whole relies heavily on migrant workers.

专注于中国公共利益和劳工问题的广东省律师庞琨表示：互联网服务业整体上严重依赖外来务工人员。

In Shenzhen, for example, more than 90 per cent of workers in such service industries are non-local migrant workers, he says.

他表示，以深圳为例，此类服务行业90%以上的劳动者是非本地的外来务工人员。

So far the transport bureau in Beijing has refused to budge⁵.

到目前为止，北京市交通委员会拒绝通融。

It has said the new rules are intended to target what it calls urban diseases.

它表示，新规则旨在解决它所称的城市病。

It cited disorderly and rapid increase of population and increased traffic congestion⁶.

它提到人口无序过快增长和交通拥堵加剧。

Some analysts⁷ argue that serious amendments⁸ are unlikely.

一些分析人士认为，不太可能进行认真的修正。

The central government is behind the new rules and they are serious about this, said one adviser⁹ to Didi Chuxing, China’s largest ride hailing app, which is set to be most affected¹⁰ by the new rules.

中央政府是这些新规则的幕后推手，他们对这件事是当真的，滴滴出行的一位顾问表示。这家中国最大网约车服务势必是受新规则影响最严重的。

But China’s premier¹¹ Li Keqiang muddied the picture late on Thursday by indicating that Beijing might be flexible in its approach to the rules.

但是，中国总理李克强在近日暗示北京方面可能灵活对待此类规则，这使整个局面更加模糊。

China would listen to the views of all parties about rules governing the market, Mr Li told tech leaders at a meeting in the southern city of Shenzhen.

李克强在华南城市深圳的一个会议上对科技行业领袖们表示，政府在市场规则上将听取各方面的意见。

If implemented¹² as is, the new rules would most likely hamper¹³ plans by Didi Chuxing for an initial public offering planned for as early as next year.

如果现有版本的规则付诸执行，新规则将很可能阻碍滴滴出行计划最早在明年就进行的首次公开发行(IPO)。

Didi values itself at $35bn after buying the China operations of Uber in a deal in August that left the San Francisco-based company and its investors¹⁴ with a 20 per cent stake in its Chinese rival.

滴滴在8月份收购优步(Uber)的中国业务后估值达到350亿美元，那笔交易使总部位于旧金山的优步及其投资者拥有滴滴20%的股份。

Wang Jun, a professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, says the new rules are in line with the central government’s efforts to limit the growth of population in major cities.

中国政法大学教授王军表示，新规则与中央政府限制主要城市人口增长的努力相符。

But if the goal is to limit migrant population in Beijing or Shanghai, why is the car-hailing industry the only one that’s receiving such treatment when many industries out there also have non-local workers?

但如果目标是限制北京或上海的流动人口，那为什么网约车行业是唯一受到这种对待的行业，而其他许多行业也有非本地的劳动者？