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  "docSlug": "37215fe80674",
  "documentTitle": "Focus Media Holding Ltd. (FMCN)",
  "authorId": "51_Muddy_Waters",
  "authorName": "Muddy Waters, LLC",
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  "sourceTypeSlug": "short_seller",
  "sourceTypeLabel": "Short seller",
  "presentationDate": "2011-12-09 00:00:00",
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  "notes": "This is a page from a short-seller research report (Muddy Waters) exposing fraudulent practices in Chinese companies.",
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      "text": "Private sector conflicts of interest – and outright private sector corruption – are too significant in China for investors to put any faith in market research commissioned by research subjects – it is anything but independent.",
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      "text": "Sinomonitor International is another firm that publicly traded Chinese companies cite in support of their business models. Sinomonitor International performed research for Tudou Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: TUDO) that concludes TUDO is “the most valuable online brand in China” and Tudou.com is the “most favored and recommended online video website” in China. Yoku.com (NASDAQ: YOKU), TUDO’s direct competitor, might dispute Sinomonitor International’s research. YOKU’s market cap is 6x that of TUDO. FMCN has cited Sinomonitor International in the past to support is claims regarding penetration of the poster frame market. However, Sinomonitor International is a joint venture between a Chinese firm and global advertising agency Dentsu. Dentsu is also former joint venture partner of FMCN.",
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      "text": "Further, FMCN has previously used CTR to verify the scope of FMCN’s LCD network. CTR’s research erroneously confirmed two bus operators CCME fraudulently claimed were in its LCD network. In fact, neither of these two operators ever had CCME screens on any of their buses. (Ironically, CCME had claimed that one of these companies was the largest operator in its network.) In instances in which CCME actually did business with operators, CTR often grossly overstated the numbers of buses the companies operated and the numbers of LCD screens. In several of these cases, quick searches of the operators’ websites would have revealed greatly numbers greatly different than those CTR calculated. CTR’s research on CCME’s LCD network was worthless, and we",
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      "text": "Private sector conflicts of interest – and outright private sector corruption – are too significant in China for investors to put any faith in market research commissioned by research subjects – it is anything but independent.",
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      "kind": "paragraph",
      "text": "Muddy Waters has direct experience with independent research that significantly inflated the size of a digital out-of-home advertising LCD network. When we wrote our initial report on CCME, we showed that the research CCME had commissioned CTR to provide on CCME’s LCD network was utterly useless. Note that FMCN is a fan of CTR’s research – in its 2010 20-F, FMCN wrote:",
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      "kind": "quote",
      "text": "We also purchase or commission studies containing relevant market study data from reputable third-party market research firms, such as Nielsen Media Research, CTR Market Research and Sinomonitor.",
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      "text": "We also purchase or commission studies containing relevant market study data from reputable third-party market research firms, such as Nielsen Media Research, CTR Market Research and Sinomonitor. — FMCN 2010 20-F",
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      "text": "9-15 Footnotes detailing sources for the claims.",
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      "kind": "title",
      "text": "Anatomy of Fecal Grade “Independent” Verification of an LCD Network – CCME and CTR",
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