“Chinese Restaurant,” a Hunan TV program very similar to tvN’s “Youn’s Kitchen,” has proven to be so popular with viewers that the Chinese TV station has recently advertised the release of the upcoming second season. (image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jul. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — The practice of plagiarism of Korean variety television programs by Chinese program producers has become even more explicit recently.
Lacking an effective resolution, Korean producers have no way to fight back as of yet.
Earlier in the month, China’s largest provincial satellite television channel, Hunan TV, launched a new program called “我家那小子” which roughly translates to “My Little One.”
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Fans of the popular Korean variety program “My Little Old Boy” produced by Korea’s SBS TV would be able to instantly recognize the similarities that can be found even in the Chinese program’s title.
And as expected, the formats of the two programs are almost identical, as they feature the daily lives of male celebrities while their mothers are invited to the studio as panel members to provide commentary on their celebrity sons.
The only difference between the two programs lies in the fact that the Chinese version has one additional female host.
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On July 13, SBS released a statement that said the TV station had never formally exported the format of “My Little Old Boy” to China.
However, the statement did not specifically address what measures SBS would take regarding the matter.
This is not the first time that Chinese TV producers have been accused of plagiarizing Korean programs.
Hunan TV has created many variety programs that copied television programs already produced by major Korean broadcasters such as SBS TV and tvN.
“Chinese Restaurant,” a Hunan TV program very similar to tvN’s “Youn’s Kitchen,” has proven to be so popular with viewers that the Chinese TV station has recently advertised the release of the upcoming second season.
Efforts to put an end to plagiarism will be executed starting July 30 when a revised bill on TV content will come into effect. The bill will provide grounds on which to stop reckless plagiarism efforts by overseas entities.
Despite the upcoming measure, critics say that cracking down on overseas TV programs will not be easy because proving plagiarism is a difficult process, and the matter is highly linked to the diplomatic ties between the two nations.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
