China is currently preventing US films from being shown in its country in retaliation to a intellectual property case filed at the WTO.

From the New York Times:

The Chinese government has not announced any ban, but American movies are no longer being approved for release early next year, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The Chinese action, these officials said, might be in retaliation for the decision by the United States last April to file an intellectual property rights case with the World Trade Organization. The filing was meant to pressure China to enforce more strictly its intellectual property rights laws against the pirating of American movies and to give American companies greater access to the Chinese market.

In a normal year, China only allows about 20 foreign films to be shown in its theaters.  According to The Times (UK), movies that have not been granted permission recently are films such as Beowulf and Disney’s Enchanted.  By preventing foreign films from being shown, consumers are forced to purchase pirated DVDs on street corners in order to see hit movies.

 Although these blockbusters may not be seen on the big screen, they are widely available on every street corner on pirated DVDs. It is this theft of intellectual property rights that is angering US officials and the big Hollywood studios.

Pirated movies is a $18.2 Billion market.