Economy

Investment in media to present true picture of China

By Qiu Bo (China Daily)
Updated: 2011-01-04 13:06

BEIJING - China will invest more in mainstream media organizations, especially those targeting overseas readers, in the following 10 years to better present a true picture of China to the world, a top official has said.

A range of plans, such as encouraging mainstream media organizations to set up more overseas stations, have received financial support from the central government, Liu Binjie, director of the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP), told China Daily.

"As China is enjoying higher international status, our mainstream media organizations are having greater influence worldwide too," he said.

Last month, China Daily, the national English daily paper, launched a weekly European edition that hit British newsstands and a fresh new Asian edition that covers a group of Asian countries.

At the same time, State broadcaster China Central Television launched its Middle East Regional Center in the United Arab Emirates with the opening of its office in Dubai.

Apart from Chinese media organizations, more Chinese publications are also seeking to broaden their overseas readership.

By the end of last year, Chinese books and periodicals had entered national libraries in 193 countries, according to GAPP figures.

Unlike years ago, when foreigners showed particular interests in traditional Chinese culture such as Chinese kungfu and Chinese medicine, China's modernization and economy are now attracting more attention in the international community, according to Liu.

"An increasing number of Western countries are expanding trade with us," he said, adding that in the future, China will publish more biographies and literary works to cater to the overseas market.

The domestic publication market has also thrived in the past five years, Liu said. GAPP figures show that China published 34 billion books from 2005 to 2010.

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In 2010, book sales increased by 15 percent year-on-year with a 30 percent rise in profit, and newspaper circulation is expected to surpass 50 billion copies, according to the GAPP.

Liu said asset value, annual revenue and profit in China's publication industry have all doubled the levels of five years ago, with sales revenue exceeding 1 trillion yuan ($152 billion) in 2010.

He said the GAPP has also simplified the procedures for publishers to apply for license numbers for new books or periodicals in the past five years.

Meanwhile, the restructuring of government-owned publication houses has also been progressing smoothly. From 2005 to 2010, all of the 148 publication houses owned by central government departments had finished their restructuring and become companies.

For example, more than 3,000 previously State-owned Xinhua Bookstores across the country have become companies to face fierce market competition, according to the GAPP.