China Media Monitor Headlines Archives

High profile mainland director Zhang Yimou has started preparing for his next project 13 Women in Nanking (Jinling Shisan Chai), according to production partner Beijing New Picture Film. Zhang Yimou plans to invite well-known actors from China and Hollywood to star in the film, which will dramatize the events that occurred during the Nanjing Massacre. The film will have a budget of around US$100 million. Shooting is slated to start in October 2010.

Mainland online video site LeTV.com plans to sue P2P video streaming service provider PPLive for violating LetTV's exclusive webcast rights to 32 films and TV dramas, according to Sina. In a previous case, PPLive was ordered to pay LeTV RMB20,000 (US$2,928) for webcasting a film and a TV drama in contravention of LeTV's exclusive webcast rights.

China Radio International (CRI) started broadcasting in the Mongolian city of Erdenet from December 1, according to the State Administration of Radio, Film and TV (SARFT) website. The channel will air 15 hours of programming a day, including 6 hours of Mongolian language content, 4 hours of Russian content, 3 hours of Mandarin content and 2 hours of English content. CRI and the National Public Radio service of Mongolia have also signed a cooperative contact to build a studio in Ulan Bator, capital of Mongolia.

The China Film Group Corporation (CFG) plans to set up an online games subsidiary in the near future, according to Marketing Director Jiang Defu at the 7th International Internet Culture Expo in Beijing.

Jiang also said the CFG has a cooperative agreement with online game operator Kylin to promote new film Treasure Hunter (Ci Ling) via an online game called Genghis Khan. Under the terms of the agreement, the CFG will also screen ads for the game before every screening of the film in mainland China.

Xinhua Sports & Entertainment Ltd announced it acquired mainland sports media distributor China Sports Media on December 4, according to a report on Sohu. China Sports Media owns the broadcast and distribution rights to around 80% of all mainland sports events, including China Basketball Association (CBA) and China Soccer League (CSL) matches. The acquisition comes as the value of Chinese sports properties comes under the microscope following a national police crackdown that has resulted in a string of arrests for gambling and match-fixing. Xinhua also plans to acquire online sports video operator NuCom Online International Co Ltd.