An unidentified staff person at the State Administration of Radio, Film
and Television (SARFT) rebutted earlier reports that Hu Ge's latest online
videoˇ°Annihilate the Gangsters on Niaolong Mountainˇ±could be banned and the
videographer fined for failing to get a pre-release permit
from the authority, according to a report in Monday's Beijing Morning Post.
"SARFT looks at films more than one and a half hours long that will be
screened in cinemas.ˇ®Annihilate the Gangsters on Niaolong Mountain' cannot be
cataloged as a film and Hu Ge has never claimed that it is commercial. So there
is no reason for us to do anything about it," the SARFT staff member told the
newspaper.
"Annihilate the Gangsters" is a 48-minute story available for online viewing
and download.
The SARFT staff member did not say if the authority would seek to control
online videos in the future.
The Shenzhen Daily's direct contact with SARFT for an official statement on
the issue met with the response that nothing could be said without an official
permit.
Hu has shown little concern over the possibility of violating SARFT
regulations.
He has been actively promoting "Annihilate the Gangsters" on his blog,
teaching people where and how to download or watch online. He also answers
viewers' questions online.
Even with Hu's helpful hints, it remains difficult to download the video from
the Internet, possibly still affected by the crush of would-be viewers.
