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Trade and Industry Department The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Brand Hong Kong - Asia world city

Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA)

Cinema Theatre Services, Chinese Language Motion Pictures and Motion Pictures Jointly Produced, Motion Picture Distribution Services

Liberalisation Measures under CEPA  

The Agreement on Trade in Services covers and consolidates commitments relating to liberalisation of trade in services provided in CEPA and its Supplements and also the Agreement between the Mainland and Hong Kong on Achieving Basic Liberalisation of Trade in Services in Guangdong.  
 
Agreement on Trade in Services
Liberalisation Measures under Cultural Services (Positive List)
Sectors or Sub-sectors
  • 2. Communications services
    • D. Audiovisual services
      • Videos distribution services (CPC 83202), sound recording products distribution services
      • Cinema theatre services
      • Chinese language motion pictures and motion pictures jointly produced
      • Technical services of cable television
      • Jointly produced television dramas
      • Motion picture and video tape production services (CPC96112)
      • Others
Specific commitments
    •          Videos, sound recording products
      1. To allow Hong Kong service suppliers to provide videos and sound recording (including motion picture products) distribution services in the Mainland in the form of wholly-owned or equity joint venture operations.1
      2. To allow Hong Kong service suppliers to set up enterprises on a wholly-owned, equity joint venture or contractual joint venture basis in the Mainland to produce video and sound recording products.2
      3. To allow motion pictures produced by Hong Kong to screen the original sound track of the dialects spoken in the motion pictures when it is contextually required, on the condition that standard Chinese subtitles are provided on screen.3
      4. To allow contractual service providers employed by Hong Kong service suppliers, in the mode of movement of natural persons, to provide services under the specific liberalisation commitments of this sector or sub-sector in the Mainland.4

        Cinema theatre services
      5. Hong Kong service suppliers are permitted to establish wholly-owned companies in the Mainland, each of which may construct or renovate more than one cinema theatre at more than one location for the operation of film screening business.5

        Chinese language motion pictures and motion pictures jointly produced
      6. Chinese language motion pictures produced in Hong Kong after being vetted and approved by the relevant Mainland authority may be solely imported through the China Film Group Corporationand distributed in the Mainland by distributors possessing "Operation Licence for Film Distribution", without any restriction on import quotas.6
      7. Chinese language motion pictures produced in Hong Kong refer to those motion pictures made by production companies which are set up or established in accordance with the relevant laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and which own more than 50% of the copyright of the motion pictures concerned.  Hong Kong residents should comprise more than 50% of the total principal personnel7 in the motion pictures concerned.8
      8. Motion pictures jointly produced by Hong Kong and the Mainland are treated as Mainland motion pictures for the purpose of distribution in the Mainland.  Translated versions of the motion pictures in languages of other Chinese ethnic groups and Chinese dialects, which are based on the Putonghua version, are allowed to be distributed in the Mainland.9
      9. For motion pictures jointly produced by Hong Kong and the Mainland, there is no restriction on the percentage of principal creative personnel10 from Hong Kong, but at least one-third of the leading artistes must be from the Mainland; there is no restriction on where the story takes place, but the plots or the leading characters must be related to the Mainland.11
      10. To allow motion pictures co-produced by Hong Kong and the Mainland to be processed outside the Mainland after obtaining the approval of the relevant authorities in the Mainland.12
      11. To allow Mainland motion pictures and motion pictures co-produced by Hong Kong and the Mainland to be processed in Hong Kong.13
      12. To allow Hong Kong service suppliers to establish wholly owned companies in the Mainland on a pilot basis to engage in the distribution of Mainland produced motion pictures after obtaining the approval of the relevant authorities in the Mainland.14
      13. To allow the dialect version of motion pictures co-produced by Hong Kong and the Mainland to be distributed and screened in the Mainland, after obtaining the approval of the relevant authorities in the Mainland, on the condition that standard Chinese subtitles are provided on screen.15
      14. To allow the dialect version of motion pictures produced by Hong Kong after being vetted and approved by the relevant Mainland authority to be solely imported by the China Film Group Corporation and distributed in the Mainland by distributors possessing "Operation Licence for Film Distribution", on the condition that standard Chinese subtitles are provided on screen.16
      15. To allow post production of domestic films (including co-productions) to be processed in Hong Kong after obtaining approval of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television on applications initiated by the principal production entity in the Mainland.17
      16. To allow contractual service providers employed by Hong Kong service suppliers, in the mode of movement of natural persons, to provide services under the specific liberalisation commitments of this sector or sub-sector in the Mainland.18

        Technical services of cable television
      17. To allow Hong Kong companies engaging in the operation of cable television networks to provide professional technical services for cable television networks in the Mainland after obtaining the approval of the relevant Mainland authorities.19

        Jointly produced television dramas
      18. Television dramas co-produced by the Mainland and Hong Kong are permitted to be broadcast and distributed in the same way as Mainland produced television dramas after being examined by the relevant Mainland authorities.20
      19. Television dramas co-produced by the Mainland and Hong Kong should be subject to the same standard on the number of episodes as that applicable to Mainland produced television dramas.21
      20. The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television has delegated to the provincial radio and television administration the authority of examining the finished tapes of Mainland produced television dramas which are produced by the production organisations under the provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities and participated by artistes or production crew from Hong Kong.22
      21. For any proposal of television drama to be co-produced by the Mainland and Hong Kong programme production organisations, the minimum number of words in Chinese contained in the synopsis of each episode is revised to 1500.23


1 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA and Supplement VI.
2 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement VII.
3 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement X.
4 Motion picture or video tape production services and motion picture or video tape distribution services include entertainment software and sound recording products distribution services; covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement X.
5 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement II.
6 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA and the newly added liberalisation measures in this Agreement.
7 Principal personnel includes personnel performing the roles of director, screenwriter, leading actor, leading actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, producer, cinematographer, editor, art director, costume designer, action choreographer, and composer of the original film score.
8 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA and Supplement II.
9 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA.
10 Principal creative personnel refer to personnel performing the roles of director, screenwriter, cinematographer and leading artistes. Leading artistes refer to leading actor and actress, and leading supporting actor and actress.
11 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA.
12 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement.
13 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement X.
14 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement.
15 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement X.
16 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement X and the newly added liberalisation measures in this Agreement.
17 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement VI.
18 Motion picture or video type production services and motion picture or video tape distribution services include entertainment software and sound recording products distribution services; covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement X.
19 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement IX.
20 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement.
21 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement II.
22 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement III.
23 Covering the liberalisation measures provided in CEPA Supplement IV.
 

For details about cultural cooperation under the Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation (Ecotech Agreement), please refer to the Ecotech Agreement.