China Alters Visa Application Process

I've just heard that yesterday, China altered their visa application process. Originally, a non US citizen could apply for a visa (tourist or business) in the US. As of yesterday, one has to apply at the consulate in your country of citizenship.

Why am I writing about this? There are two reasons. Firstly, I am hoping to attend the WWW conference in Beijing (21st-25th April). As the application process can not be started until 30 or fewer days prior to travel, I've just submitted my application recently. WWW this year has a great track on social media. Secondly, after a moderate amount of searching, both in the blogosphere and elsewhere, I've not actually found any documentation of this change. I'll keep searching and update if I find anything.

Update: I understand that the LA consulate will process visas, though I can't vouch for the accuracy of this yet.