Dae Jang Geum, or Jewel in the Palace, a 70-episode South Korean TV series about an ordinary woman who became a high-ranking physician in an imperial palace, took China by storm this fall.

Its success, part of a recent wave of trendy Korean pop culture, attracted massive audiences and is driving China's TV producers to take a long, hard look at their difficulty in developing hits.

After Dae Jang Geum's September 1 debut on Hunan Satellite TV (HTV), a popular provincial TV station featuring entertainment and information programs, the show hit an audience rating of 8.6 percent, drawing the most viewers in its time slot, before concluding last month.

The TV drama, which recently concluded, became the talk of the country. An estimated 160 million Chinese have watched the show, which also demonstrates various aspects of Korean culture, such as its medicine, cooking, dressing and folk singing. These cultural traditions are of interest to Chinese viewers as the two neighboring countries have had an influence on each other's cultures in years gone by.

"My roomies and I used to fight for the remote control, but when Dae Jang Geum is on, everyone is quiet and huddles together in front of the TV to watch," said Wang Xiaodan, a 23-year-old company manager in Beijing.

Even Li Zehou, the prestigious 75-year-old Chinese philosopher, said during an interview with Xinmin Weekly, a Chinese news publication, that he wants to take a look at the popular TV series as he'd heard much about it while traveling abroad.

Dae Jang Geum has attracted fans during runs on stations in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Southeast Asia and even the United States.

According to the Chicago Tribune, a group of middle-class people and non-Koreans in Chicago flocked to a local bar to watch the TV drama on Saturday evenings when it was aired on a local, low-power station.

The popularity of the show draws attention to the so-called "Korean current" in recent years, a trend marked by the popularity of Korean products among Chinese people, in particular urban teenagers.

Korean TV shows, films, books, food, clothing and home appliances have been in vogue in China, giving rise to what sociologists and media call the "Korean current."

Tough TV Market

Though Korean TV dramas are hits among Chinese audiences, they came under fire by Chinese TV producers during a China TV market seminar held in June in Shanghai.

Zhang Qiang, General Manager of Beijing Forbidden City Film Company, took the first shot, saying: "I've seen Dae Jang Geum already and I think it's just so-so. Our domestic TV shows definitely excel them in terms of quality, costumes and sets."

"Korean TV shows are hot because they take up a larger portion of China's TV market. I hope the TV industry leaders cut the imports of Korean shows and make more room for domestic TV programs," complained Ding Xin, a famed Chinese TV producer who was responsible for such hits as Die in Regret and Goodbye, Vancouver.

The idea of "keep the Korean current out" was widely held by many attendees of the seminar. But according to the newly released China TV Market Research Report, Korean TV shows are not stealing as a big piece of the audience pie from their Chinese counterparts as it would seem.

Chinese stations imported 70 TV shows in 2004, totaling 1,297 episodes, among which 45 titles were from Hong Kong and Taiwan, comprising the largest portion. Korean TV shows were the second largest group, according to the report.

The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television has a rule that prime time hours are reserved for domestic TV shows. Overseas programs are only allowed to air after 10 p.m., when most Chinese are getting ready for bed.