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# Breaking News: ReelShort Hit by Wave of Plagiarism Accusations
- URL: https://www.real-reel.com/breaking-news-reelshort-hit-by-wave-of-plagiarism-accusations/
- Published: 2025-07-26T04:54:28.000Z
- Updated: 2025-12-27T03:43:49.000Z
- Description: July 25, 2025 — The storm around copyright in the booming vertical short-drama industry has intensified.
- Author: Real Reel
- Tags: OBS.

The controversy first broke when **Dianzhong Technology (the company of DramaBox App)** issued a statement on its official WeChat account, accusing **Crazy Maple Studio, Inc.** with its short-drama platform **ReelShort** of publishing and distributing multiple series “nearly identical” to Dianzhong’s copyrighted works **without authorization**.

The alleged infringing titles include (but are not limited to):  
*Leaving, and Both Childhood Sweethearts Regretted It to Madness*, *The Queen*, *Respecting the Elderly and Caring for the Young*, and *The Wanderer Returns Home*.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*xQOy_TLhNaQGnUOsQrgKsA.png)

Following Dianzhong’s statement, more industry leaders spoke up. **Ting Huadao** and **Malt Short Drama,** two of China’s most prominent short-drama studios, released their own strongly worded declarations, accusing ReelShort of “serious and repeated plagiarism” and calling for stronger copyright protection across the sector.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*qNLnbJg2G0lNXEfvc-jnbg.png)

#### What’s at Stake

Ting Huadao claims that two of its hit IP dramas, *The Vegetable Vendor Turns Out to Be the Duchess* and *The Cold Uncle Spoils His Sister-in-Law Endlessly*, were copied scene-for-scene by ReelShort titles *The Seamstress Is The Duchess* and *Mated to My Brother-in-Law Alpha*.

Malt Short Drama also reported similar issues, adding more weight to what now appears to be **an industry-wide backlash** against ReelShort.

ReelShort, operated by **Maple Leaf Interactive**, is widely recognized as the **leading platform for exporting Chinese short dramas overseas**, which makes these allegations all the more shocking.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*C8Xk5xf8zcQOe5jcDRGytA.png)

#### Why This Case Matters

For years, China’s content industry has been criticized for weak copyright enforcement, but this wave of statements marks a turning point.

**Dianzhong’s initial declaration lit the fuse**, and now other top studios are speaking out, publicly demanding accountability instead of settling disputes quietly.

Frankly, **this is encouraging to see**. It signals that copyright isn’t just a legal checkbox anymore, **it’s becoming part of the industry’s values and public discourse.**

---

### The Bigger Picture

Ironically, Crazy Maple Studio, Inc.’s parent company, **Chinese Online (COL)**, is a founding member of the China Copyright Association’s Micro-Drama Committee.

> “The industry’s #1 company should also be #1 in ethics — not #1 in plagiarism,” *Ting Huadao wrote in its own statement.*

Meanwhile, regulators have been issuing new rules emphasizing IP protection in vertical mini-dramas, making ReelShort’s alleged behavior even more controversial.

---

It started with **one studio speaking up (Dianzhong)**. Then **others followed (Ting Huadao, Malt, and more)**. And now, the conversation isn’t just about *ReelShort,* it’s about **where the short-drama industry is heading.**

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