In-flight media firm looks to tap market (2)

"But right now, priorities are different," he explained.

Chinese planners and financial authorities have said they will focus on developing the country's cultural industries during the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-15), a decision which will likely lead many well-established State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the media sector to try to enter the capital market, Zhang Qi, an IPO analyst at Zero2IPO Research Center, told the Global Times.

Since top leaders pledged to support the media sector at the beginning of 2012, some 50 mainstream media companies - including 10 State-owned organizations, such as the Xinhua News Agency's official Internet portal xinhuanet.com and China Central Television's China Network Television - have begun restructuring to meet IPO requirements, according to local media. Meanwhile, on April 27, the country saw the first public listing of a State-backed news entity, people.cn, the online news portal of the People's Daily.

In the case of China Southern Media, the company's plans to diversify are another big motivator behind its rush to the IPO pipeline, Zhang Qi continued.

The company hopes to expand its business scope from in-flight media to include film-making and digital media to give it an edge against its domestic rivals, Jiang Xubin, China Southern Media's deputy manager, recently told local media.

We recommend:
Mainland, Taiwan airlines sign co-op contract	Great changes in Zhengzhou railway station	Wanda Group ventures onto the global stage
Sports car makers look to mainland market	Top Ten Economic Events in 2012	'Gold road' laid with gold bars