Chinese brands appear in more U.S. TV shows

(Ecns.cn)--Chinese advertisements planted in American commercial films, such as TCL's exposure in "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," are already the order of the day, but starting this year, more domestic brands have also begun carving out spots for themselves in foreign TV shows, according to the Yangtze Evening Post on Monday.

In a recent episode of the popular American sitcom "The Big Bang Theory," a product by Chinese milk brand Yili could be seen repeatedly, while some online users also said that Lenovo computers appeared in a British TV series called "Strike Back."

Compared to U.S. blockbusters, placement in a TV series is cheaper and can involve a longer cooperation, said Liu Siru, CEO of Filmworks, an entertainment marketing company that helped four Chinese businesses place their products in a blockbuster last year.

Currently, nearly 10 domestic companies intend to buy into American TV series and, according to Liu, the advertisement of a local Chinese fashion brand will show up in the latest episode of "Gossip Girl."

With China importing more overseas movies, the chances for Chinese investors to advertise in foreign movies and TV series will only increase, said Liu.