China Pulls Avatar

Chinese official think the fictional story might be too close to the reality of contemporary life in China....

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China’s decision to pull Avatar from screens around the country at the height of its popularity is a high profile reminder to international marketers that Western messages don’t necessarily translate to Asian markets.

The Chinese authorities were reportedly concerned that the depiction of greedy property investors in the film would resonate with viewers concerned about the displacement of ‘nail house dwellers’ by property developers in their own country, which has led to widespread unrest.

The Wall Street Journal reports that China’s government has moved to downplay the associations being made:

“Major publications and news portals

 in China were said to have received orders from government authorities to downplay discussion about nail houses related to the movie. Avatar’s success in China has also prompted a fair amount of debate among moviegoers and those in the film industry over whether China will ever produce a similarly spectacular film.”

The message for marketers is that China’s market is not a free one. Broader economic and social issues can, and do, have an impact on business in China in ways that they don’t in Western countries."


  • This article was submitted on January 27, 2010 at 03:34 AM PST
  • By http://www.linkedin.com/miniprofile?vieweeID=330586&context=anet&view miniprofile-initialized" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">Kevin Freedman, CEO at Freedman International, making international marketing more efficient


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