The third draft of Film Industry Promotion Law which proposes harsher punishment for box office fraud is under consideration by the 24th session of the Standing Committee of the 12th National People's Congress which started on October 31, Chinanews.com reported.
The draft law has been assented through the 17th and 22nd sessions. Some members pointed out that punishment is not strong enough and suggested a higher fine.
The related clause has been amended as "those who didn't provide real data on sales will be required to be corrected by film bureaus above county level and pay a fine between 50,000 ($7,394) to 500,000 yuan ($73,945); and those who have fraudulent income of over 500,000 yuan will face twofold to fivefold fine."
With China becoming one of the largest film markets worldwide with over 44 billion yuan in box-office revenue in 2015, the validity of the revenue figures has come into question. Monster Hunt, which earned a record 2.4 billion yuan, and Ip Man 3, which grossed 443 million yuan in March this year, were both accused of box-office fraud.
