(Yicai Global) July 11 -- Zhejiang Huace Film and TV Co. [SHE:300133] and Ciwen Media Co. [SHE:002343], affiliates of Princess Agents producers, took a tumble on the stock market in the wake of a plagiarism scandal involving the popular Chinese series based on Xiaoxiang Donger's novel 11 Agents of the Princess Consort.

Xiaoxiang allegedly plagiarized works of Jiang Nan and Xiao Ruse. After the news broke, Jiang issued a statement claiming that the TV drama copied some characters' taglines from his work. Xiao then posted dialogs from one of her novels that were similar to ones in the show.

The share price of Huace Film and TV fell 7.06 percent and 1.71 percent on July 7 and 10, respectively, on the news. Ciwen Media stock fell 4.49 percent yesterday after a five-day losing streak.

Princess Agents was coproduced by China Syndication Entertainment Co., which is owned by Huace Film and TV subsidiary Croton Media, and Ciwen Media's Mitao Media Co. The series is still being aired on satellite TV channels.

The producers are not legally obligated to disclose any unverified copyright infringement, Guanghe Law Firm's Wang Jiayi told Yicai Global. They are required to disclose suspected plagiarism as a significant matter, if they receive a court summons or are investigated for plagiarism by administrative departments, Wang said. If the plagiarism allegations are substantiated, it is bound to affect the listed companies' share prices.