Anchor: The leading movie producer and distributor in China has taken a financial initiative committed to providing much higher quality products for consumers in the future.
Cash raised on foot of a newly-issued bond - the first of its kind in the domestic film industry - will be put to use helping to restructure the organization, producing digital movies for cinema-goers, and renovating older film theatres.
CRI Reporter Chen Xi has the details.
Reporter: Movie enthusiasts in China may have the opportunity to enjoy higher quality films, as China's largest state-owned movie producer and distributor, China Film Group Corporation, has issued 500 million Yuan, or nearly 70 million US dollars, worth of bond.
A senior official with the Ministry of Publicity, Gao Shusheng, has applauded the new move.
"We substantially support the combination of cultural industry and capital industries. Cultural enterprises, especially those of state-owned nature or state-controlled companies, should take advantage of the capital market to increase their capacity."
The money raised from the seven-year secured bond will be used in building a digital production center for movies and new digital cinemas. It will also go to the renewal of some old cinemas.
The digital production center, covering an area of over 34 hectares in a northern suburb of Beijing, has been under construction since early 2006.
Head of China Film Group Corporation, Han Sanping, says issuance of the bond will further improve the Chinese movie industry financially.
"The issuance of the bond, for one thing, has ensured the capital for the development of the company. At the same time, it also brings us more pressure in terms of reform and surplus. We need to maintain our development so as to raise the value of the capital. This will help us build fine reputation as well."
China Film Group Corporation is also the only importer of foreign movies in the country and a major exporter of Chinese films.
