China’s new hit TV drama, “The Protagonist,” has sparked a wave of livestreamed readings of the novel on which the show is based, triggering debate over copyright infringement.

The drama, released May 10 on state broadcaster CCTV and domestic streaming platform Tencent Video, tells the story of Yi Qin’e, a young woman from the northwestern Shaanxi province who rises from the bottom of a local Qinqiang opera troupe — a type of folk opera originating in the region — to one of the genre’s leading performers. The series is adapted from the eponymous novel by Chen Yan, which won the 2019 Mao Dun Literature Prize, one of China’s highest literary honors.

Produced by acclaimed filmmaker Zhang Yimou, the series has drawn widespread attention for its historical setting and portrayal of hardship. According to domestic ticketing platform Maoyan, it has accumulated more than 1.18 billion plays across all episodes.

Since its May release, livestreamers have capitalized on the show’s popularity, broadcasting readings of the book in carefully decorated, warmly lit studies, amid soft background music. In some cases, hosts create digital backgrounds using official promotional images or cast photos from the drama, which may infringe copyright or portrait rights. Most hosts do not specify whether they have obtained authorization to use the content.

Lü Yinping, a senior partner at Kangda Law Firm in Beijing, said that reading a novel aloud on a livestream infringes on broadcasting rights since viewers cannot independently choose when and where to access the content. Lü added that replaying or editing such livestreams also violates reproduction rights.

Many accounts attempt to reduce legal risks by mixing plot commentary and personal opinion into their broadcasts. However, Lü said that legally, copyright infringement depends on numerous factors, including the total amount of content cited.

In April 2025, a Chinese livestream host was sued by a novelist for analyzing and reading from their novel without authorization. The Beijing Internet Court ordered the host to pay nearly 25,000 yuan ($3,700) in damages to the author.

A check by Sixth Tone on Tuesday revealed that many accounts dedicated to livestreaming readings of “The Protagonist” had been blocked, though some remain active and continue appropriating images from the drama. Some accounts that remained active appeared to have disabled livestream purchase functions.

Editor: Marianne Gunnarsson.

(Header image: Screenshots of livestream hosts reading the novel “The Protagonist” aloud, alongside promotional images and cast photos from the TV adaptation. From Xiaohongshu)