Quotas may limit more foreign TV shows online

China's top media authority is likely to impose quotas on the licensing of overseas programs by video websites, local media reports.

Since last October, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television is rumored to be discussing whether to follow the movie-import system by applying a quota system to TV shows, an anonymous industry insider told the Guangzhou-based Southern Metropolis Daily.

If applied, the policy could mean that video websites will be allowed to license only a limited number of overseas programs each year. This could have a huge impact on Chinese video websites, as overseas content continues to be one of their major attractions.