On August 18, stock prices in the film and television sector rose across the board. Data shows that by the close of trading, the cultural media index rose by 3.11%, ranking third in gains among all industry sectors for the day, just behind the communication equipment and software indices, with a net capital inflow of 10.257 billion yuan.

Stocks within the sector performed strongly, with Huazhi Digital Media, Huace Film & TV, Ciwen Media, Jishi Media, and H&R Century hitting the daily limit-up. Other film and TV stocks such as Mango Excellent Media (300413.SZ), Baina Qiancheng (300291.SZ), Huayi Brothers (300027.SZ), and Hengdian Film & Television (603103.SH) also saw significant gains.

The stock price surge is directly linked to positive industry news. Economic Daily News reporters exclusively learned that on August 18, the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) held a video conference on the "21 Guidelines for Radio and Television," providing a detailed interpretation of the clauses, which served as a strong boost for the industry.

"The capital market has responded positively to the NRTA's policies. For the entire creative industry, this is undoubtedly a significant release of vitality, as it simultaneously targets both the supply and demand sides. It not only gives the supply side more creative space but also grants the demand side greater choice," Zhao Bin analyzed for reporters, noting that this dual approach greatly stimulates the market.

Li Neng (pseudonym), a veteran in the TV drama industry, told Economic Daily News reporters, "The drama series industry hasn't had good news for a long time. Usually, the news is about platforms tightening policies or requiring shorter episode counts, which are negative signals." He explained that dramas were previously priced per episode, with more episodes commanding higher prices. However, major platforms like iQiyi, Youku, Tencent Video, and Mango TV have been reducing their purchases, which is naturally unfavorable for the industry.

In fact, the film and TV drama market has been declining in recent years: TV drama production, the number of licensed dramas, and platform broadcasts have all continued to drop. Data shows that in 2014, 429 TV dramas received distribution licenses, but by 2024, this number had plummeted to just 115, a 73% decline. Li Jingsheng, vice president of the China Radio and Television Association, pointed out at the 12th China Internet Audio-Visual Conference in March 2025 that the long-form drama ecosystem has reached a bottleneck. While "improving quality while reducing quantity" has been repeatedly emphasized, the "reduction in quantity" aspect is little known.

Meanwhile, the rise of micro-dramas has strongly impacted long-form dramas. In 2024, the user base for micro-dramas in the online audio-visual sector reached 662 million, with a six-month growth rate of 14.8%. The average daily usage time per user on standalone micro-drama apps increased from 90 minutes to 101 minutes, now on par with instant messaging. Li Neng noted, "Over the past year or so, major long-form video platforms have been focusing on short dramas. iQiyi has invested heavily, while Tencent Video plans to allocate 10%–20% of its long-form drama resources to short dramas."

Both Zhao Bin and Li Neng told Economic Daily News reporters that the timing of the NRTA's 21 Guidelines is highly significant. "First, it will benefit long-form drama production companies like Baina Qiancheng and H&R Century. Moving forward, they can freely explore themes they previously avoided," Li Neng said.