China Media Monitor Headlines Archives

VeryCD, a popular online site offering P2P downloads of audio-visual content, was back online just one day after it was inaccessible for 24 hours on December 9, reports Sina. The brief period of downtime sparked rumors that VeryCD had been down as part of the State Administration of Radio, Film and TV's (SARFT) current campaign against unlicensed video websites, despite the operator's repeated denials. Site Co-Founder Huang Yimeng said the downtime was due to technical problems. VeryCD is currently in the process of applying for an operating license from SARFT.

The export revenues generated by Chinese TV dramas have remained stable at around US$10 million per annum since 2000, reports China Daily. China International TV Corporation (CITVC) spokesperson Cheng Chunli said Chinese TV dramas have failed to enter mainstream Western markets, with exports limited to East and Southeast Asia. Costume dramas accounted for the bulk of mainland programs sold overseas, he added.

Cheng Chunli said the poor sales could be attributed to the relative length of Chinese series, which are broadcast daily rather than weekly, as well as the complex cultural and historical references in the plotlines of many Chinese TV dramas.

SARFT started a "Go Abroad" project in 2001. Exporters of TV dramas are promised crucial government support in the Outline of the 11th Five-year Plan for National Culture Development.

From 2010, a 40% limit will be imposed on the broadcast time of TV dramas as a proportion of all programming on provincial satellite TV channels, according to State Administration of Radio, Film and TV (SARFT) TV Drama Director Li Jingsheng. He made his statement at the annual conference of the China Radio and TV Production Committee held on December 9. Li also took the opportunity to criticize Huayi Brothers’ TV drama production Dwelling Narrowness (Wo Ju) for its negative portrayal of officialdom and its sexual content.

65 million Chinese households will be able to receive digital cable TV by the end of 2009, according to Li Dan, chairman of the China Radio and TV Society. China aims to complete the digital transformation of all cable TV households by 2015 but this will be difficult to accomplish due to the current pace of the conversion work, reports Beijing Business Week.

Stellar Mega Films, a leading Chinese production and distribution company, has been forced to sell 80% of its shares by public auction in order to repay a debt, reports Economic Observer. The order came from the Guangdong Conghua City People’s Court, which sentenced the company to repay the debt and commissioned three auction companies to launch the bidding process on December 17. The court did not disclose any details of the debt in question.

Stellar Mega Media was founded in 2001 and owns Stellar Mega Films, which has focused on film and TV drama production as well as cinema construction and operation. Undoubtedly an 80% share loss of its film subsidiary will impact the entire group. Stellar Mega Film’s productions and co-productions include Perhaps Love (Ru Guo Ai) and The Warlords (Tau Ming Zhuang).