A bad news recently came for lovers of TV commercials, like me. The State Bureau of Broadcasting, Movies and TV recently released a regulation on the restriction of TV commercials, saying that no commercials can be inserted into TV dramas during the prime time from 7:00-9:00pm every evening. Other restrictions include a 20 per cent cap on the proportion of commercials played on any channel each day and a tighter 15 per cent cap on commercials played between 7:00-9:00pm. During dining times, commercials for certain drugs and hygiene products are forbidden.

Were it not for the grumbles and complaints of those who cannot appreciate the art of commercials, I would certainly have more appetite for my dinner and eat more healthy food when I watch TV commercials. The ads for bowel medicines often remind me of the importance of eating hygienic food. The ones for diapers remind me to drink more soup to maintain a normal metabolism. And the ones for tampons remind me of the fact that I am female and it would be best for me to eat less fat to keep a slim figure. But all of this will come to an end after the regulation comes into force on January 1, 2004.

But the thing that irritates me most is that the regulation should forbid commercials being inserted into TV series at certain time periods. Every time I watch TV series, TV commercials are always attractive and hard to miss. Think of a dinner without red wine, or a Valentine's Day without bunches of roses. That is exactly the situation of the ban on inserted TV commercials. And there is a further possibility which cannot be ruled out that sometimes the red wine is better than the beefsteak, the roses better than the boyfriend, and TV commercials better than the programme. So how can they just be taken away from the TV programmes and in the prime time at that!

Even if the commercials are not as attractive as the programme itself, they play an indispensable role by providing a tea break or a washroom break. How could some people have the courage to grumble about inserted TV commercials? How could they fail to appreciate the thoughtfulness of the staff of the TV station and the humane element of the system, which allows us adequate time to go to the toilet or to make a cup of tea to continue to enjoy the TV programme? They are either ungrateful people or their bladder has a much larger capacity.

And the third contribution made by the inserted TV commercials is that they do good to our hearts. Especially for those closely knit TV plots like that in a detective or terror movie, inserted TV commercials generously provide us with several breaks so that we can be temporarily lifted from what we have been immersed in and come back to the real life of sports shoes, health care products, cell phones and so on. Medical reports show that it really does people good if they can occasionally take a break from stress and excessive concentration.

But all this is going to come to an end. Gone will be the days of pleasure from TV commercials.

But it is right to say: "When God closes the door he opens the window". What is fortunate is that enough mercy will be exercised in implementing such a regulation. In fact the current Law of Advertising has a similar stipulation but it is rarely enforced. This is really exhilaration and offers great hope.

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