The popular online novel Yun Shen Ji (The Fall of Gods) will be adapted into online series, an online game and merchandise. It's one of the examples of the cooperation between internet companies and the film industry. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Meantime, other related productions, including online series, games and merchandises, are in the pipeline.

The unfinished novel has accumulated more than 15 million fans on 17k.com since it was released on June 8.

Liu Jun, deputy general manager of Le Vision Pictures, says the online series will be directed by Xiang Guoqiang, who is known for the drama Young Love Lost, and the movie will be made at the scale of a Hollywood blockbuster.

"We hope the franchise can develop to a classic franchise like Star Wars," says Liu.

Meanwhile, industry insiders say the internet never permeated into screen productions this much previously.

A report released on Aug 25 shows that in 2015 China's streaming sites produced 5,006 episodes of 379 online series－surpassing the previous eight years' total, according to China Alliance of Radio, Film and Television.

"Today, the public's taste powerfully influences literature and artworks," says Yin Hong, a communications professor at Tsinghua University.

"Television and movie producers believe that if they attract the youth, they can capture the market."

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