Beijing- TV censors who collect unwarranted fees from drama producers will be "strictly dealt with," according to Li Jingsheng, director of the TV drama administration bureau under the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT).

Li's statement follows accusations by writer Wang Shuo that TV drama censorship officials have received bribes from producers. Since 1997 some producers have had to bribe the censors with "censorship fees" in order to obtain a green light for their dramas, Wang said.

Chinese director Ye Jing was quoted by local media as saying he paid more than 100,000 yuan (US$13,000) of "censorship fees" for a TV play which was censored three times but never got the green light.

SARFT and its provincial subordinates are responsible for censoring TV dramas in their jurisdictions, and censorship-related expenses are supposed to be covered by their administrative budgets.

"SARFT and most of its provincial subordinates strictly obey the rules," Li said, but he admitted a few provincial agencies do not, partly because there were so few TV dramas produced in their region they had not yet established censor groups or a budget. This led to a situation in which the censors' expenses -- including premises, accommodation and service charges -- were covered by the TV producers, Li said.

Meanwhile, SARFT reported that revenues from China's radio, TV and film industries reached a record 109.9 billion yuan ($14.4 billion) in 2006, rising 18% year-on-year.

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