China Mulls Limit on Imported TV Shows Online

NEW YORK: The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television in China is said to be considering imposing quotas on the amount of imported TV programs shown on video websites.

According to local media reports, the administration is rumored to be in discussion about applying the same quota system currently in place for feature films to TV programming. This would limit the number of TV shows licensed per year to streaming sites such as Youku Tudou, Tencent and Sohu.

In April, China's TV regulators pulled a number of popular U.S. series, among them The Big Bang Theory and The Good Wife, from a range of online video sites. New measures have been put in place that call for all foreign TV shows needing prior approval from three government departments before being shown online.

China's quota system for films restricts foreign movie imports to 34 titles per year on a revenue-sharing basis.