Nov 28, 2011
Translated by Song Chunling

As of Jan 1 next year, all television stations across the country will be prohibited from screening advertisements during the middle of a single episode of any television series, according to new regulations announced by the State Administration Of Radio Film And Television (SARFT) yesterday.

Stations that are found to have broken the rule face the risk of being ordered not to screen any advertisements at all

SARFT yesterday released additional regulations on how broadcast TV advertisements would be administered in addition to making important changes to the existing regulations. As part of the new rules, the administration removed a clause in the previous regulations that allowed broadcasters to screen advertisements during breaks in a single episode of a tv drama. The new rules require that "advertisements are banned in the middle of each episode (45 minutes) of TV dramas; the rules that apply to advertisements that appear during the screening of films still follow the old regulations."

All TV stations are asked to adjust their current arrangements with advertisers before 2012. In January, SARFT will increase supervision to ensure the new regulations are being adhered to.

According to a report in today's Beijing News, the majority of internet users appeared to support the new regulations.

Links and Sources
Beijing News: 明年起电视剧中禁插播广告
SARFT: 关于贯彻执行《〈广播电视广告播出管理办法〉的补充规定》的通知