At the 18th Beijing International Book Fair, the Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press launched new digital products [see post "Roads of China’s digital publishing export"] : a digital reading pen for foreign languages “Wai Yantong” [probably Viaton], Internet teaching materials and a collaborative translation platform. The digital reading pen will be promoted in primary [...]
Archive for the ‘cases’ category
Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press: on digital road to educational service provider (China)
08/09/2011How 3 publication distribution groups in China adjust to new challenges
11/08/20112011 is the first year of the 12th Five-year Plan, so development of the press and publication distribution industry this year will profoundly effect the future. Some of the reactions to the many challenges distribution groups are facing were mentioned in interviews of China Press and Publication Journal: Strategy adjustments in the face of bigger [...]
China’s e-reader giant: How can Hanvon regain past glory?
04/08/2011As the “giant” in China’s e-reader industry, Hanvon Technology enjoyed a rapid and positive development during 2009-2010. However, the pattern has changed gradually as more and more enterprises entered the market. However, the fundamental reason for Hanvon’s decline is its weakness in internal competitiveness according to Yu Ren of Beijing University’s School of Journalism and [...]
East Europe: a new market opportunity for the “going out” of Chinese publishing houses?
28/07/2011Last month, Time Publishing and Media Co. – belonging to Anhui Publishing Group – signed an agreement with Marszalek Publishing, becoming the first Chinese publishing house to enter the Polish market. The group intends to establish a network which covers the whole East European market in the future. As a non-mainstream market, Eastern Europe offers differentiation [...]
Wake-up call for traditional publishers: Appeal in China’s first digital copyright case turned down – industry voices
06/07/2011On July 4th, China’s so-called “first digital copyright case” [see post "First digital copyright case decided in China"] came to an end with the court dismissing Zhonghua Book Company’s appeal. Voices of publishing insiders on this case: Bi Yu of Light Industry (Beijing) Web Press Ltd.: Publishing houses should increase competitiveness in digital copyright and [...]
Heilongjiang Publishing Group: Popularizing the brand through book fair (China)
13/06/2011The 21st Book Fair lowered the curtain in Harbin two weeks ago, and its main organizer Heilongjiang Publishing Group attracted people’s attention due to its careful planning and accurate implementation to successfully make its brand more reknown. Li Jiujun, Board Chairman of the group, stated that the group will deepen the system reform and establish [...]
Spotlight on: Tianjin Publishing Foreign Trade Company
10/06/2011Beginning in September, Tianjin Publishing Foreign Trade Company plans to participate in several overseas Chinese book fairs, such as the Malaysia International Chinese Book Fair, Confucius Publishing Cultural American Exhibition, etc. It was awarded the “national cultural export key enterprise” by four departments including GAPP for its significant performance on promoting the “going out” of [...]
A spotlight on how restructuring of newspapers and periodicals changes China’s publishing industry
30/05/2011Shao Mingyi, Vice-Director of Hubei Press and Publication Bureau, stated that the Bureau has so far repositioned 126 kinds of newspapers and periodicals, and 86 of them have been transferred between publishing groups. The reform of newspapers and periodicals in Hubei can be used as a reference for other provinces. Main characteristics: Continuous structural adjustment [...]
Pirated books in App Store: Chinese publishers to fight against rampant copyright infringement
29/04/2011After the fight against Baidu’s copyright infringement, Chinese publishers intend to join hands, targeting Apple as the next enemy. The writer Wu Xiaobo found his work “Thirty Years’ Surging” ["Jidang sanshi nian", there must be a better translation for the title...] sold in the App Store at a price of 1.99 USD, although neither he [...]
First iPad-related copyright case goes to court in China
28/04/2011For using the content of Beijing News without authorization, the developers of the “Chinese Newspapers & Periodicals” iPad application were sued for compensation of 600,000 RMB. The defendant claims that they only integrate publicly available content for users’ free reading and the application is still for trial use, not for commercial operation. Zhang Hongbo, deputy [...]
Going out, down, and up: strategy of Zhejiang Xinhua Bookstore Group (China)
20/04/2011In 2010, Zhejiang Xinhua Bookstore Group achieved rapid progress, realizing sales of 7.67 billion RMB in the province (+5.92% y-o-y). According to its General Manager Wang Zhongyi, the group’s operation objectives in the 12th five-year period are to achieve 7% annual sales growth, reaching 11 billion RMB in the province at the end of 2015, [...]
30th anniversary of “Reader”: Creating a Digital Age legend in China
19/04/2011China’s story magazine Reader is celebrating its 30th anniversary this month and now accounts for 3.3% of China’s magazine market. In the Digital Age, Reader continues to create its own legend. Focusing on marketing strategies: Reader carries out the strategies of low price as well as high quality. 23 distribution sites have been set up [...]
Case: Tianjin Publishing Media Group plans for 2011 (China)
11/04/2011According to its 2011 Annual Working Meeting, Tianjin Publishing Media Group and its subsidiary companies intend to reach a 15% increase y-o-y in the major economic indicators. The focus will be on five activities in 2011: To accelerate building a large joint-stock cultural enterprise controlled by the Tianjin Publishing Media Group, with Northern United Publishing [...]
Educational publishing in China: media group promotes “Quality Year”
06/04/2011Fenghuang Publishing Media Group held its Educational Publishing Symposium in the last week of March. In his speech, Board Chairman of the group Tan Yue pointed out that units at all levels should develop educational publishing under the aspects of systems, markets, products, talent teams, digitalization, services and reward & punishment. He also emphasized the [...]
China International Publishing Group: using international book fairs to increase Chinese publications’ influence in the world
30/03/2011With the advantages of information, channels, interpersonal relations and experience accumulated in international communication, China International Publishing Group formed its own international publishing and export-oriented characteristic, promoting cultural exchange as well as Chinese publications’ influence in the world. Every year, the group publishes 3,000 books in nearly 20 languages, its exports constitute more than 50% [...]
(Case study) Hefei Daily: A Party newspaper in transition
24/03/2011[Note: Party newspapers in China have to adjust to the market economy and maintain their readership in spite of heavy competition, while their primary task to guide public opinion and support the Party remains unchanged. The measures listed below illustrate how one of the most-advanced daily newspapers is trying to reach these goals.] Improving competitiveness [...]
Spot on: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press
23/03/2011The Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, established in 1979, is sponsored by Shanghai Foreign Language University and managed by the Ministry of Education. In 31 years of development, the press totaled 6,500 publications with 650 million copies in 30 languages, and 120 million discs. With the current 6.8 billion RMB gross sales volume, it has [...]
Baidu’s troubles: Lawsuits on copyright piracy and search monopoly (China)
21/03/2011In addition to the fifty authors accusing Baidu of participating in copyright violations in an open letter, the complaints against Baidu come from various sides: China Writers Association The association’s vice president Zhang Kangkang pointed out in the “two sessions” that the digital publishing industry is facing a problem with copyright authorization for mass-market works. [...]
(Case study) Anhui Daily to improve Party newspaper influence (China)
07/02/2011[Note: In order to fill the news void of Chinese New Year, I'll post some article summaries I didn't get done during the last couple of weeks. The following one is not the usual case study I sometimes provide, but Anhui Daily's experience is considered to be meaningful for other Party newspapers to learn from. [...]
China Publishing Group starting a new journey for reform and innovation
24/01/2011The 2011 China Publishing Group Work Conference was held on January 18-19, at which the group’s work plans were formulated: To publish a series of excellent books. To complete the listing and financing work and to implement the 12th Five-year Development Plan. To improve digital publishing and the “go out” strategy. To enhance the establishment [...]
China Education Publishing Media Group’s strategy: from national champion to international player
06/01/2011General manager Li Pengyi of the recently established “aircraft carrier” (=national champion) China Education Publishing Media Group (CEPMG) described the company’s development strategy in an interview. Model: company group + joint-stock company. CEPMG focuses on professional education publishing. The combined model will allow rapid expansion at the right time, since in the next ten years [...]
First cross-regional strategic cooperation between publishing and distribution groups in China
04/01/2011Zhejiang Publishing United Group and Anhui Xinhua Distribution Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement on December 28th, making this the first cross-regional strategic cooperation between a publishing group and a distribution group in China. The comprehensive cooperation includes 9 aspects: Capital and copyright cooperation, to co-invest and co-operate major projects. Publication distribution, to strengthen cooperation [...]
“SOHO Tabloid” returning to life (China)
29/12/2010“SOHO Tabloid” will be published again in March next year after a short pause (see previous post “Sudden death of an unusual corporate magazine in China“). Thanks to the investment of Zhongxin Publishing Group (CITIC Press), the new version named “Xin Tabloid” (“Xin” being an abbreviated version of CITIC) will be richer and better in [...]
Reforming Huazhong University of Science and Technology Press: improving core competitiveness (China）
29/12/2010The system reform at Huazhong University of Science and Technology Press led to great achievements: Carrying out the all-round reform – Guiding the staff to learn current enterprise concepts through training and investigations – Establishing regulations and suitable structures in salary system, institutional setting, HR management etc. Branch presses taking off together – The Press [...]
Reform in China’s publishing industry: situation and development
28/12/2010Recently, China Print and Publishing Journal interviewed Wang Guike, Chairman of Guangdong Province Publishing Group as well as Southern Publishing Media Co., Ltd. Wang introduced the current reform situation and described the next development plans: Finishing shareholding system reform and preparing listing – Identifying property rights – Checking capital – Standardizing operations – Cultivating professional [...]
China Southern Airlines Media completed shareholding system reform
27/12/2010China Southern Airlines Group Culture Media Co., Ltd., becomes the first civil aviation-related enterprise that has completed the reform of its shareholding system. Turning into a listed company, establishing suitable management systems and implementing the “go out” strategy are its next plans and goals. With its Southern Air flagship magazine, China Southern Air Media has [...]
Restructuring: Huawen Publishing House merges into China Publishing Group
21/12/2010On December 16th, the Huawen Publishing House’s Restructuring & Handover Meeting was held in Beijing, celebrating the company’s official merger into China Publishing Group. Wu Shulin, GAPP’s deputy director, attended the meeting and indicated that GAPP will give the new publishing house more support on resource allocation, preferential policies and development environment. Huawen Publishing House [...]
Restructuring: Huaxia Press books sold at a 99.75% discount (China)
15/12/2010Recently, a public auction was held by Huaxia Press to sell its remaining stock and scrap books. Teaching materials and scrap books were sold at 0.4% and 0.25% (resp.) of their list price. The auction is the first attempt to dispose of national assets in the restructuring process. Source: Huaxia Press’s scrap books sold at [...]
(Case:) Xinmin Evening News: 3 convergence measures for print & Internet (China)
10/12/2010Along with the general trend of media convergence, Xinmin Evening News takes three measures to form its multi-level development: 1) Newspaper interacting with Internet As its slogan “a website with user-generated content”, Xinmin Net let users provide news clues, write blogs and discuss hot topics with editors. Reporters also may publish the latest news’ preview [...]
Restructuring: state-level publishing house and local newspaper form JV (China)
03/12/2010Hubei Special Publishing House, a new company registered by China Peace Publishing House and Hubei Daily Media Group, was officially founded at the end of November. The cross-media, cross-regional cooperation between a state-level publishing unit and a local newspaper group is another case exemplifying structural reform and the industries’ integration. It also marks Hubei Daily [...]
(Case study) Xinhua Bookstore’s “9yue Net”: developing digital publishing to change market pattern (China)
26/11/2010Digital publishing developed rapidly in 2010. Publishers, hardware producers and Internet enterprises show great interest in this area. Xinhua Bookstore also takes action by establishing its digital publishing platform “9yue Net”, mainly providing e-book reading services: “9yue Net” has invested much money to set up a copyright protection system in order to protect the interest [...]
How China’s traditional publishing houses intend to speed up digitization
19/11/2010Recently, GAPP issued the “Opinions” on China’s e-book industry’s development and introduced four kinds of e-book business licenses, opening a new chapter of standardized management. As the first group obtained the e-book publishing qualification [=license], companies are applying various development models: China Publishing Group launched its Dajia mobile reader to provide digital services, integrating content, [...]
Southern Media Group to strengthen international expansion (China)
18/11/2010In the past half year, Southern Media Group implemented the “go out” strategy, publishing a series of overseas editions including Guangdong Today City Page, Nanyue Qiaoqing ["Southern Guangdong Overseas Compatriots"] and Guangdong Xiangxun ["Canton Rural News"], catering to Chinese-speaking communities abroad. In collaboration with Sin Chew Daily (Malaysia) and Modern Media, Southern Media Group’s overseas [...]
Going Global: Zhejiang Publishing entering East European book market (China)
16/11/2010Zhejiang Publishing Union Group has been devoting itself to opening up the book market of Eastern Europe. Recently, the Group published books like the “Polish-Chinese Bilingual Classification Dictionary” in the market to promote the cultural communication between China and Eastern Europe. The Group will make efforts to carry out new cooperative projects in the future. [...]
National media champions in the making: three publishing groups sign equity agreement (China)
08/11/2010Northern United Publishing & Media Group, Tianjin Publishing & Media Group and Inner Mongolia Xinhua Distribution Group signed an equity cooperation agreement in Beijing on November 5th. The new company’s business scope includes management and operation of and investment in publishing, distribution and related cultural industries; its registered capital is 520 million RMB. Tianjin Publishing [...]
Shanda Literature’s CEO on confronting Baidu with own search engine (China)
02/11/2010After getting involved in the online shopping search business, Shanda Literature announced that it had started developing its vertical search engine for novels. Hou Xiaoqiang, CEO of Shanda Literature, talked about the strategy in an interview: Shanda was forced to enter the search business because of widespread piracy, especially by Baidu’s search. Shanda’s Cloud Search [...]
IPO of China South Publishing and Media Group: interview with chairman Gong Shuguang
26/10/2010The IPO of China South Publishing & Media Group (CNS) already mentioned in the post “China South Publishing and Media Group IPO upcoming“ took place successfully last week. According to the comapny’s announcement, total frozen capital reached 431.8 billion RMB. In an interview prior to the IPO, Gong Shuguang, chairman of CNS, said that the [...]
Sudden death of an unusual corporate magazine in China
22/10/2010The vice president of Soho China, a major real estate development company, announced in a microblog that the well-known corporate magazine “Soho Xiaobao” (Soho tabloid) – of which he is also is an editor – would cease publication. With each issue focusing on one topic and a rather intellectual approach, “Soho tabloid” was quite different [...]
The development of digital periodicals in China: How to merge both old and new media
22/10/2010[Note: The question of how to merge both old and new media was discussed during the 2nd Asia-Pacific Digital Magazine Conference, which was held October 14-15 in Hangzhou, sponsored by FIPP and China Periodical Association. This post focuses on the speech given by the President of Zhejiang Daily Newspaper Group, Wang Yiyi.] Wang Yiyi is [...]
China’s “go out” strategy: LINK TIMES-News China•South Asia Edition started publication
21/10/2010The LINK TIMES-News China / South Asia Edition, China’s first news magazine facing to South Asian countries, was launched. The full-color monthly English-language magazine, issued by the News Office of Yunnan Province Government and the Yunnan Branch of China News Agency, is part of the “go out” strategy for Yunnan’s culture industry, with political, business [...]
China’s publishing industry: What it takes to get bigger and stronger at home and in the world
18/10/2010The China Press and Publication Journal presents an interview of Wu Shangzhi, Head of GAPP’s Publication Management Division, and Phoenix Publishing & Media Group president Tan Yue (source provided at end of post), which is summarized below: At the end of 2008, Phoenix Publishing & Media Group became the first – and until now only [...]
Tianjin Publishing Media Group: 11 agreements on mobile & e-book publishing, micro-novels (China)
14/10/2010Tianjin Publishing Media Group signed 11 significant contracts with 10 enterprises including China Mobile to cooperate on: co-construction of the National Tianjin Digital Publishing Base, operation of mobile publishing, micro-novel industrial projects, development of journal platforms, e-book publishing, share acquisition of a cultural media company. Source: Tianjin Publishing Media Group signed 11 significant cooperation contracts [...]
China South Publishing and Media Group IPO upcoming
13/10/2010With its upcoming IPO the China South Publishing & Media Group will become the country’s first whole industry-chain listed publishing & media stock in China’s A-share market. The IPO will issue no more than 400 million A shares, raising funds of 1.852 billion RMB. Offline purchase days are October 19th-20th, online purchase day is October [...]
English-language regional weekly newspaper debuts in Hangzhou (China)
29/09/2010In the first cooperation of a national newspaper and a provincial press group, China Daily and Zhejiang Daily co-launched the English-language weekly “Zhejiang Weekly” in Hangzhou. The eight-page tabloid will initially circulate with the province’s largest paper, the Qianjiang Evening News, but “is expected to go global together with China Daily later”. The article “Zhejiang [...]
Esquire Magazine China: front cover with LED display
26/09/2010The Ads of China blog offers a brief view on the collaboration of Audi and Esquire Magazine to create an E-Ink front cover. Esquire Magazine China: Lights up with E-Ink
Advertising in books: business models in China
26/09/2010Nowadays, the phenomenon of advertising in books is more and more widespread in China. There are many different business models: musical instruments dealers cooperate with music publishing houses to advertise in the teaching books; publishers use the extra revenue to provide additional products such as DVDs which help to sell more books. a publisher introduces [...]
