Countdown to the New Year

TV countdown shows

Unlike Xu Haiyan, who plans to take her two little daughters to join celebratory events at a park near her home in Hong Kong, Liu Wei, a 25-year-old from Beijing, wishes to spend new year's eve watching an online celebration party.

"Winter in Beijing is freezing," he said, laughing. "I prefer to stay at home watching the show online with my friends. We have multiple choices of entertainment as several provincial-level television stations are broadcasting new year shows live online."

Hu Yuan, project manager with Hunan TV's countdown show said that the show is like a singing and dancing gala that keeps the audience involved in the new year celebrations.

Hunan TV's countdown show was the most viewed TV program last year with about 140 million people watching the show when popular singer Wang Lihong performed on the stage.

Hu said the countdown show, first launched in 2005, is unlike the celebrations associated with the traditional Spring Festival.

"Most of the Lunar New Year shows stress on traditional Chinese culture and family-oriented activities, while the Dec 31 countdown show is more like a modern music concert for the younger generation. We also look to create more interactive experiences for the online and offline audiences, through the music carnival."

In addition to Hunan TV, the State-owned China Central Television and provincial TV stations such as Jiangsu, Anhui and Zhejiang will also broadcast their countdown shows live.