© The Guardian
It’s hard to escape western brand names such as Kentucky Fried Chicken and Nike in Chinese cities. But media companies such as Walt Disney and Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation have far less to show after years of slogging to break into the market. The government is still anxious about the potential influence of overseas media. “I wouldn’t say this is a one-off gain,” Vivek Couto, executive director of Media Partners Asia, told Reuters of the Disney theme park deal. “But it’s in a non-sensitive space. It’s got nothing to do with television content that can be politically sensitive or competitive with other major Chinese companies in the space.” Although Disney programmes are shown on Chinese television, the company has not been able to launch its own channel.