Why Did Beijing Ban Some TV Advertising? Or, Why a Lack of Talent Shows Could Harm China Part 2

I have been writing a bit lately about the moves Beijing has been making in curtailing media content. Last month I made the case that by curtailing freedom of media and by not allowing the market to direct media production and consumption that China was actually endangering, not preserving its future. Why? Because China wants to move to an economy fueled by innovation, high value add products and services. China also wants to effectively wield soft power around the world. These moves will stifle the needed market motivations and personal creativity needed to achieve the above.

This week a number of readers have asked why Beijing banned some advertising on TV and what it means.

The first thing to know is that this move is part of a larger corralling of media of all types; internet, social, blogs, print, movies and yes, TV. The main factors feeding the year-long campaign, of which the ad ban is just one piece, are:

1- A change of leadership is coming. Next year President Hu and Premier Wen will be stepping down and Xi Jinping will assume power. Whenever there is a change of leadership in China, there is a temporary move to political, social and media conservatism. While everyone figures out which way the wind will be blowing, no one in the current or coming government wants to see disruption and disharmony during the transition (viewed as a vulnerable period).

2 The Great Firewall worked very well for Web 1.0, but in a social-media dominated Web 2.0, Beijing has found that blocking key words, web sites and foreign content is not enough to maintain complete control. Recent scandals, including the Wenzhou train crash, the Shanghai Metro crash, a party officials son hitting a pedestrian with his car and others, were all widely talked! about, dissected and questioned through social media. This prompted authorities to rethink their engagement with and control of all media. How do you police 10 billion user generated posts per day? You start by rethinking your entire approach to controlling communications.

3 The Chinese Central Government is in the media business. and doesnt like having to compete for the attention, hearts, and minds of viewers or for the advertising dollars the big hits produce.

4- The Arab Spring - Beijing has followed the Arab Spring closely. They realize that satellite TV, non-state owned media and social networking not only fueled and provided logistics for these revolutions but they brought the images, sounds and events live to screens around the globe. There is a reason you never see video of unrest in the Western regions. If you dont see it, it didnt really happen. They see the media landscape as holistic and interconnected. If you are not consuming state-approved content you may start getting ideas

What does this mean for business?

*TV is is the most widely consumed and effective advertising medium in China. If your company and brand depend on it, you need to rethink your plans for the next 18 months.

*China has more Internet users than any country on Earth and reaching them is critical to domestic and foreign companies branding and sales strategies. Social media is now an important part of commerce in China. If ads can be banned on TV, they can be banned on social media as well.

*Media of any type is still considered a National Security industry in China and in most ways foreigners will be shut out for the foreseeable future

*Like we always say! Your C hina Strategy has a shelf-life of six months You need to constantly assess conditions on the ground and have contingencies in place.

What do you see out there?