Analysts said the latest curb could be a reaction to the accelerating expansion of foreign participation in local media, in a country where the media is traditionally more a propaganda tool than a form of entertainment.

China ''will not again allow a foreign satellite TV station to have landing rights in the country,'' Xinhua said, citing new rules from regulators.

Regulators said the new rules are designed to strengthen oversight of the industry while the government ``finds ways to regulate and effectively control [existing foreign media in the market] to prevent harmful programs from entering.''

Foreign players with mass broadcasting rights now include Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, Viacom's MTV and News Corp-backed Phoenix Satellite Television, which all broadcast in Guangdong.

Tom Group, controlled by Li Ka-shing, also owns a station with mass broadcast rights in Guangdong with Time Warner. Overseas players with more limited broadcasting rights in the market include Time Warner's CNN and the BBC news channels, and various channels owned by News Corp's Star TV subsidiary.

``They just want to regulate the activity and not let it get out of hand,'' said Vivek Couto of Media Partners Asia.

``They'll regulate what's already happened, then wait for the [2008] Olympics, then maybe open it further afterwards.''

Foreign firms distribute their signals in China through a national satellite system, giving central censors the power to cut off signals when content appears on sensitive topics like Taiwan independence and the Falun Gong movement.

The ban on new stations in the market is expected to have the most immediate impact on Disney, which applied for a limited broadcasting license in 2003.

Viacom's Nickelodeon children's channel also applied for a limited broadcasting license in 2003, and could also be affected.

The ban is the latest restriction imposed by Beijing, which began allowing new ventures in TV programming last year, only to flinch when foreign firms took advantage to create new channels.

In April, the television and film regulator announced that all media companies would be limited to a single programming joint venture, in a move that appeared directed at Viacom, which had announced several partnerships. Last month, the regulator followed with more regulations banning city and provincial broadcasters from cooperating with foreign media companies. REUTERS