Season 2 of House of Cards, which debuted simultaneously in China and its home country, is creating waves in the form of discussions about US politics, among other things. The Chinese streaming platform Sohu.com, which claims to have garnered 9 million viewers for the show, is racketing up its promotional campaign.

But compared with domestic or South Korean soap operas, this melodrama of American-style deceit and dense plotting is perceived as a niche product on the high-end of viewership, thus bringing in an audience of quality rather than quantity.

(Full disclosure: I was invited by Charles Zhang, CEO of Sohu, to participate in the Feb 18 press conference as a special guest offering my interpretation on the show.)