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Warner Bros International Cinemas (WBIC), the global cinema division of Warner Bros, and leading Chinese industry player China Film Group (CFG) said yesterday CFG would take over three of WBIC's six cinemas in the country.

Located in Chongqing Municipality, Changsha in Central China's Hunan Province and Nanchang in East China's Jiangxi Province, all three cinemas are joint projects of WBIC and SZITIC (Shenzhen International Trust & Investment Co Ltd) Commercial Property Co Ltd.

Last November, WBIC said it "must stop its investments in cinemas due to a major regulatory change". Warner Bros said it remained committed to its other businesses in China, including local language film production, a home video joint venture, consumer products and studio stores, all of which have different legal structures, business models and regulatory requirements.

In 2003, China allowed seven cities to open theaters with 75 percent foreign investment on a trial basis. WBIC made plans in 2004 to build 40 cinemas in China by 2008 through local partners.

But the Chinese government in 2005 barred foreign investors from holding majority stakes in joint ventures in the entertainment sector.

WBIC decided last year to withdraw from the market and pull out of all its six cinemas, although the company had maintained the top position in the industry for years. In 2005, total box office revenue from its theaters was 120 million yuan, compared with a total market of 2 billion yuan.

A WBIC spokesperson told China Daily yesterday that the disposal of its remaining three cinemas is "still under negotiation", without disclosing further details.

The cinemas are in Guangzhou, operated with Guangzhou Jin Yi Audio-visual Investment Co, and in Shanghai and Nanjing, co-run with the Shanghai Film Group.

(China Daily 03/02/2007 page13)

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