US TV serials to be under review(2)

Ding Heng, senior director of Youku Tudou, tells Beijing Evening News that his company looks forward to working closely with the authorities on addressing pirated material.

Du from Ze Media says industry regulators will have to improve their supervision to protect video websites' legal rights.

Previously, all overseas TV serials aired on television channels were examined by the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television. The new regulation, however, requires overseas content streamed on video websites to be examined by regional-level media administrations in provinces where these websites are registered.

Provincial authorities "who have little experience in content examination will have to build a professional team and examine content in various languages", Wang Zhaonan tells Southern Metropolis Daily.

Despite the enhanced supervision, most industry insiders say the restrictions won't affect video websites' business interests.

Ma Ke, executive director of copyright purchasing with Sohu.com, says in an earlier interview with China Daily that US TV serials are not their most popular shows, even though the website has earned reputation for airing high-quality US TV productions.

The success of House of Cards, for example, was rather random, she says. The two seasons of the show are exclusively licensed to Sohu.com and remain the only US production to make the Top 10 list of the website's most viewed TV series. The list is dominated by local productions and a small number of South Korean soap operas.

"US TV serials in China appeal mainly to urban youth with a decent income and educational background," says Du with Ze Media. "The removal of such shows may cause a drop in advertisement placements of products targeting high-end consumers. But it won't have a major influence on the whole website."

Regardless of the quality of overseas productions, the average person still prefers to watch productions that have a Chinese cultural background, Sohu's CEO Zhang Chao-yang said during the 2nd China Internet Audio-Visual Conference in Chengdu earlier this month. Imported shows will never become mainstream, he said.

"So don't worry. Licensing these shows will benefit the development of the industry. I don't think we need to protect the local industry. Only by remaining open can we fuel development," he says.

For example, Zhang says, the current success of the country's online game industry is due to the way China embraced South Korea's online games and learned from them.

Zhang also cited the state administration's current policy that allows video websites to examine content by themselves as vital to promoting fair and effective competition in the industry.

"This policy is very important. I think we should carry it forward. This is great progress," he says.