China Daily, China’s largest English-language website, signed a licence agreement with SPB TV during the second China-Russia New Media Forum in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on Monday.
“We are looking forward to having co-operation with SPB TV,” said Han Lei, editor-in-chief of the China Daily website. “Through taking advantage of the SPB TV platform, we hope that more good Chinese stories can be known and favoured by Russian people.”
The agreement involves granting international rights to video-on-demand (VOD) content in genres such as entertainment, documentary and news.
The content will be produced by the China Daily website and broadcast on the over-the-top (OTT) platform of SPB TV, as well as via the Belt & Road special application, which is owned by SPB TV.
The content will be either in English or dubbed in the local language. The monetisation of content is based on the sharing of profit received from advertisement placement.
“We are currently witnessing the ever-increasing interest in alternative sources of news. The fact that the largest English-language website in China is granting us the rights helps us satisfy viewer demand and ensure the geographic expansion of our new Chinese partner,” said Kirill Filippov, SPB TV’s CEO.
SPB TV, as the largest provider of end-to-end OTT TV, internet protocol TV (IPTV) and mobile TV solutions in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), started broadcasting content from China in 2013.
At present, both the company's OTT platform and the Belt & Road app, developed exclusively for those taking an interest in TV content from China, are broadcasting over 16 Chinese terrestrial channels and four VOD channels, as well as content from four Chinese media companies: Xinhua, Shanghai Media Group, China Central Television (CCTV), and the China Economic Network.
“Enhancing co-operation with Chinese media is one of the most important strategic development strategies for us, and our technological ability allows us to be able to protect the safety of the content,” said Mr Filippov.
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/world/china-watch/business/china-daily-in-russian-tv-deal/