2015年经济学人 网上娱乐 热潮太洋

Online entertainment

A craze too foreign

China tries to restrict foreign entertainment online

FOR young professionals in China's cities, watching television online has become a part of daily life.

In Shanghai, for example, many office workers watch their favourite TV shows at their desks during lunch-hours,

on the metro¹ on the way home, or even while walking on the city's crowded pavements.

Foreign TV dramas are a particular attraction. They are strictly² controlled on terrestrial television stations,

but can be watched free on China's video-streaming websites. This year Chinese viewers have been gripped by “House of Cards”,

an American political drama series, as well as by several South Korean shows and the BBC's “Sherlock”,

which was available with an authorised Chinese translation hours after being shown in Britain.

Yet viewers may soon find their choices more limited. Last week China's TV regulator said that, from April,

any foreign series or film would need approval before being shown online.

Chinese media say that regulators are also considering limiting the number of foreign series shown online to a specific proportion of total output.

The new rules appear aimed at closing one of the biggest loopholes in China's control of its media:

on terrestrial TV, for example, foreign dramas are banned in prime time. Many are forbidden altogether.

It is not clear how strictly the content of foreign programmes shown online will be vetted³.

But the regulator's call for “healthy, well-made” works which “showcase good values” seems to echo a recent tightening⁴ of controls on terrestrial TV.

These include bans on dramas dealing⁵ with topics such as superstition⁶, espionage⁷ and—bizarrely—time travel.

Earlier this year Chinese websites were ordered to remove several American TV series; at least one of these, it was announced, would be shown, edited,

on state TV instead. In a hint of what may follow, the government broadcaster recently screened the fantasy drama “Game of Thrones”—minus nudity and violence (ie, the point).

The new controls may simply push younger viewers away from authorised providers and towards pirate sites instead,

says a Chinese academic specialising in media studies. At a time when China has at last begun to bring copyright infringements⁸ under control—

the country's main video-streaming websites now pay foreign producers for their TV shows—that would be a step backwards⁹.

1 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

2 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

3 vetted   

v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的过去式和过去分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• The recruits were thoroughly vetted before they were allowed into the secret service. 情报机关招募的新成员要经过严格的审查。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All staff are vetted for links with extremist groups before being employed. 所有职员录用前均须审查是否与极端分子团体有关。 来自辞典例句

4 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

5 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

6 superstition   

n.迷信，迷信行为

参考例句：

• It's a common superstition that black cats are unlucky.认为黑猫不吉祥是一种很普遍的迷信。
• Superstition results from ignorance.迷信产生于无知。

7 espionage   

n.间谍行为，谍报活动

参考例句：

• The authorities have arrested several people suspected of espionage.官方已经逮捕了几个涉嫌从事间谍活动的人。
• Neither was there any hint of espionage in Hanley's early life.汉利的早期生活也毫无进行间谍活动的迹象。

8 infringements   

n.违反( infringement的名词复数 )；侵犯，伤害

参考例句：

• It'seems to me we've got to decide on wider issues than possible patent infringements. 我认为我们不能只考虑侵犯专利可能性这一问题，要对更大的一些问题做出决策。 来自企业管理英语口语（第二版）(2)
• Wikipedia relies on its users to correct errors and spot copyright infringements. 维基百科主要依靠用户来纠正错误，并发现版权侵权行为。 来自互联网

9 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。