Dealer's Choice #4

Several Takeaways from UNIQLO Incident

The News

1.     UNIQLO sex video: Clip of Chinese couple having sex in Beijing fitting room goes viral – TomoNews:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xgKWTVLbXw

2.     Couple made sex video in a Uniqlo changing room and now the store has become a TOURIST ATTRACTION
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/peoplesdaily/article-3163909/Couple-sex-video-Uniqlo-changing-room-store-TOURIST-ATTRACTION.html

3.     Beijing Police Arrest Couple Who Filmed Uniqlo Sex Tape – Huffingtonpost News:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/beijing-police-arrest-uniqlo-sex-tape-couple_55abfa1de4b0caf721b31192

Caution

This is the point where you click on the red X in the upper right if you feel uncomfortable about this topic.  

Notes

1.     Pornography is illegal in China

2.     But people always get what they want

3.     For example, online snoops almost immediately tracked down the protagonists

4.     Turns out it was a booty call between two strangers just met in the store

5.     The video has already gone viral in all kinds of Chinese social networks. I would assume that some people’s lives are influenced

6.     For example, the couple and some circulators were arrested, because

7.     Pornography is illegal in China

Takeaways

1.     I don’t think they are the first couple who did it in the fitting room, but they are the first such couple who go viral in China. Couple of possible reasons:

a)      Doing in the fitting room is still a fantasy for many people. This couple not only realized it but also filmed and released it.

b)     The video was not made by professionals. It feels real because it is real. For some reason that gives some people arousal, which is what Realitykings does (as shown in class).

c)      Pornography is illegal in China (I have said this an awful lot of times). This makes spreading and talking about it so exciting for Chinese people.

d)     It is actually more about making fun of it than discussing it. Now that “UNIQLO” or “dressing room” is officially associated with “intercourse”, people are writing lines such as “Let’s move this party to UNIQLO”. Even the official social media accounts of fashion stores made fun of it such as “we H&M have larger, brighter fitting room, don’t go to UNIQLO anymore”.

2.     It is not illegal to have a booty call in a fitting room. It is not very unethical, either. The only blamable point is that this may occupy the room for too long (well…is it too long though?). The reason why Beijing police arrested the couple and four others is the suspect of proliferating, not doing or filming. Liberty is fine, but it should not go beyond the law, whether you think the law is outdated or not.

3.     The power of internet and the power of internet violence

a)      As mentioned above, almost immediately after the outflow of the sex tape, snoops have tracked down the protagonists, including their names, their relationship, what they do for a living, and where do they live.

b)     The UNIQLO store has become a tourist attraction. Gawkers take selfies in front of the store. Some suspected that if this is a bold way advertise, but UNIQLO firmly denied it, probably because if the police determine the company had a hand in this it could be fined up to $140k.

4.     If you want to try this yourself, check this link out. It has tips for doing this, followed by 200 comments
http://www.xojane.com/sex/ill-try-anything-at-least-once-sex-in-a-dressing-room