D-day has arrived in the halls of the Chinese domestic viewing experience and the howls of rage and sadness abound. Late last year in 2014, the almighty SARFT (State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film) issued one of its inexplicable decrees concerning what can be aired in China whether on the big screen, televisions, and even internet viewing portals. This particular decree had widespread ramifications that reverberated strongly in US television entertainment as well as K-drama land. SARFT’s edict demanded that starting in 2015, no overseas shows can be aired online in China if it’s not completed already, and those must first be screened by SARFT and approved.

The US television industry naturally went batshit since US shows are seasonal and run for many years before a series finale airs so there is no way popular shows will ever see the light of day over the Chinese web waves. K-dramas are less problematic since the short ones are 16-episodes and the long weekend dramas still have finite episodes upwards of 50-episodes. But this still means K-dramas can no longer be live-aired online and must wait for a show finish before getting SARFT approval. Last year all the popular K-dramas made headlines for how much it sold the online rights to various Chinese video portals like Youku or iQiyi, not to mention how many times a drama was viewed in China became a badge of its popularity. That’s all over (for) now. Continue reading →