China bans sex, murder and ghosts from TV streaming services

US streaming sites such as Netflix and Amazon.com are unavailable in China due to the country’s firewall. However, local sites such as Sohu, which recently saw Netflix’s salacious political drama House of Cards find a niche audience, would be expect to suffer under the effects of the ban. In a statement to content providers, authorities also demanded the removal of content featuring depictions of sexual abuse, rape, polyamorous relationships, necrophilia, prostitution and masturbation. Violent murder, suicides, drug use and gambling were also among the subjects banned via the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) circular, as well as instances of pornography. [...] In April, China launched a government campaign against pornography and vulgar content titled “Cleaning the Web 2014”, which has so far seen the closing of 110 websites. Chinese stars with a history of drug use or involvement with prostitution have also been banned from appearing on film or television. - Ben Child,The Guardian [via/web:http://streaming-tv.us]