Filling the Gap: Foreign Acquisitions in the Publishing Distribution Sector

By Philip Qu and Anna Zichterman, TransAsia Lawyers, Beijing

Equity investment in the Chinese media industry has been off-limits to foreign companies for years. Foreign participation has thus far been limited to contractual-based cooperation, such as copyright licensing deals and media technology transfers, as the main channel into the restricted publishing and broadcasting sectors.  More recently, the People¡¯s Republic of China (PRC) government has changed its tack, allowing for the privatization of, and even foreign investment in, the ¡°commercial¡± aspects of the media industry, including distribution as a first step.