HANOI — Police in conservative Vietnam have arrested three people for running pornographic websites that attracted millions of page views a day, reports said Wednesday.

Three people who administered the sites were arrested in southern Ho Chi Minh City, the reports said.

One of the sites was first launched in 2008 to offer free downloads of mainstream films, said the website of Thanh Nien newspaper.

Sex clips and videos were included the following year when the website’s administrators decided they wanted to attract more visitors, it said.

According to VNExpress news website, the three accused earned up to 30 million dong (1,500 dollars) a month for running the sites — the equivalent of around 18 months’ average salary in Vietnam.

The reports did not give the date of the arrests, but said the two websites had been closed.

Communist Vietnam, a one-party state, allows no independent media and controls all print, broadcast and online publications.

Authorities have expressed concern about pornographic content online.

Police could not be reached for comment by AFP.