Still from upcoming South Korean drama The Herstory Photo: IC

Due to stricter government regulations in China and an overall drop in TV viewership, the South Korean TV industry has been changing the way it produces shows while also bringing famous stars back to the small screen.

It was a year of changes for the South Korean TV industry in 2015.

In China, a major market for exported South Korean shows, tightening regulations concerning domestic streaming sites greatly impacted the South Korean TV industry's performance in the market. Meanwhile, the industry was continuing to experience a steady slide in viewership numbers for prime time TV series in South Korea as more young people turned to other forms of entertainment.

To adapt to these changes, starting in the middle of 2015 South Korean TV studios began changing the way they produce and distribute their series, moving from the traditional method of shooting and broadcasting a series after every few episodes to not broadcasting a series until it is shot in its entirety. Additionally, studios have focused more money and effort on bringing in big name stars such as movie stars Jeon Do-yeon, Lee Young-ae and Kim Hye-soo to their shows.

When it comes to content, in addition to producing shows from A-list script writers such as Kim Eun-sook (Secret Garden), Park Hye-ryun (Pinocchio) and So Hyeon-kyeong (Prosecutor Princess), a lot of popular comics and novels are also getting ready for TV adaptations, to include the US drama The Good Wife. Genres are also broadening, ranging from suspense and action shows to vampire and career dramas.

Regulatory impact

In April 2015, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television implemented regulations aimed at streaming sites known as the "Foreign Restriction Decree." According to these regulations, all domestic streaming websites need to obtain a permit to broadcast series. The catch being that all series would need to be reviewed by related government agencies in their entirety before they can be shown. 

This basically meant that many South Korean shows could no longer be broadcast simultaneously in South Korea and China since only a portion of  a show's episodes would be produced and broadcast at a time. By the time a series could make it to China, it would have already been broadcast in its entirety in South Korea, and as a result Chinese streaming sites would pay less for the broadcast rights. 

According to a report from the Beijing News, after The Heirs caused South Korean dramas to become popular again at the end of 2013, broadcast right payments rose to 90,000 yuan ($13,600) per episode from less than 4,000 yuan. In 2014, the popular romance drama You Who Came from the Stars sold for 185,000 yuan per episode, while Pinocchio, which came in at the end of 2014, reached 1.73 million yuan per episode.

However, after regulations came into effect, prices for TV series began to fall. For example, prices for 2015 drama Hyde, Jekyll, Me went from 1.91 million yuan to 636,000 yuan per episode.

Still from 2015's Pinocchio Photo: IC

A new model for 2016

To battle these lowered prices, studios in South Korea are doing what they can to ensure their shows premiere simultaneously in China and at home.

Descendants of the Sun and Moon Lovers are two such dramas that have completed all their episodes before  broadcast.

Set to air at the end of February, Descendants of the Sun is the first South Korean drama to produce a series in its entirety far in advance of its air date. The studio plans to submit the show to Chinese authorities for review soon after post production is completed so as to ensure it is shown both in China and South Korea at the same time.

The drama stars Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo. Although it's still unknown how South Korean audiences will receive the show, the strong Chinese fan bases of the two lead actors have ensured its popularity in China.

Moon Lovers is actually an adaptation of the popular 2011 Chinese period drama Scarlet Heart. It began shooting earlier this month and is expected to be broadcast in South Korean and China at the same time over the summer.

Ever since the copyright for the Chinese story was purchased by South Korean station SBS in early 2015, fans back home have been paying close attention to the project. Now only after a year or so, the new drama is almost ready to be sold back to China.

The South Korean version of The Good Wife is another hot project for 2016. To portray the lead heroine played by Julianna Margulies in the original US drama, Jeon Do-yeon has been brought back to TV screens after an 11-year absence.

While shooting and broadcasting a smaller number of episodes at a time provides more flexibility for a show to adjust according to audience feedback, finishing everything in advance ensures South Korean studios can still take full part in the Chinese market.

In the end which method better suits the markets in either country? Audiences from South Korea and China are sure to let the industry know over 2016.


Newspaper headline: Necessary changes