(ECNS) -- China's state broadcast watchdog will ban advertising and other content during TV drama episodes, but many satellite TV operators said they had not received such a notice, Beijing Youth Daily reports.
The newspaper cited an online post that claims to be a notice issued by the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT), saying ads and other programs are prohibited from appearing in the middle of an episode, and no ads are allowed with the cast list at the end of a drama.
According to the online document, television series will be subject to censorship prior to broadcast and rebroadcast, and the name of certification authorities, as well as production and broadcast licensing numbers, must be listed both at the beginning and at the end of each episode.
It also forbids hype of such concepts as "complete edition," "unabridged edition" and "deleted clips."
Beginning Jan. 1, 2015 China's television watchdog banned broadcasters from airing the same TV series on more than two channels during prime time, down from the previous four, and limited the number of episodes per day to two, which caused a funding crunch in the TV drama industry.
At an annual conference held in February this year, TV broadcasters proposed restoration of a policy that allows ads during an episode and permits them to air three episodes a day instead of just two.
