Any video site in China that streams foreign content now has to get approval from the government. If they don’t get it, the sites could be shut down early next year.
The new regulation was announced on State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television site, but it offered no further details. A source for The Associated Press did say that the new regulations include a requirement that foreign licensed content can only amount to 30 percent of the number of domestic content added last year.
Each site has to register their foreign content with a local broadcasting authority by March 2015. If they don’t, the site could be shut down.
The move appears to be in response to the growth of American and South Korean content being officially licensed by sites like Sohu and Youku Todu. As more of these sites popped up, the government’s initial response was to come up with tough regulations against vulgar content and others that have a “negative impact on society.” Back in April, it was also reported that American shows like The Good Wife and The Big Bang Theory were both pulled from sites.
Some analysts who spoke with the AP and Bloomberg weren’t too surprised by the move.
“Rules are getting tighter and online video sites will be likely regulated under similar standards as Chinese TV stations in the future,” Luke Xu of IResearch told Bloomberg. “Foreign films and TV shows only account for a small proportion of shows on most Chinese video sites, so the impact is limited.”
image of Jim Parsons courtesy of Peter West/ACE/INFphoto.com
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