Woo Tai-wai pleaded guilty to the charges, having included a hyperlink in an online forum message that allowed forum visitors access to an adult website that featured the obscene photos in question, according to the South China Morning Post.
Charles Mok Nai-kwong, chairman of Internet Society, an organization devoted to Internet education and information, said he is concerned the ruling could open future legal issues regarding Internet responsibility and online censorship.
"In this case, the court has given a new direction to the public concerning the responsibility of Internet users," Nai-kwong said.
He also questions whether a hyperlink can be considered an "obscene article" under current law, adding that search engines such as Google carry adult-site links similar to the one Tai-wai posted.
"In cases where search engines list out all the links to pornographic websites, is it justifiable to ask whether these would have to undergo censorship as they also provide these hyperlinks to obscene articles?" Nai-kwon said.
Chinese police began a countrywide crackdown on Internet porn April 12, and have since received more than 13,000 reports of adult material online. Reports have increased from around 300 to nearly 700 every day, making up 31 percent of all reports received by police during this period, according to the Ministry of Public Security.
