The move is part of the administration?s plan to implement a major overhaul of the industry.

GAPP head Liu Binjie, said recently that publications which are non-profitable or have other problems will be closed.

On the other hand, those publications which are operating well, can expect GAPP support by arranging important projects, integrating resources and even helping their IPOs, according to China Youth Daily.

Liu said the reform for the newspaper industry will support the mergers and acquisitions between media and publications to achieve GAPP?s aim to help build six to seven giant media groups countrywide in three to five years.

On August 28, the China Journalist Association Superintendent (CJAS) became the first newspaper under the GAPP umbrella to close operations after it failed to attract investors, according to China Economic Weekly.

GAPP?s decisions are based on the report, Guiding Opinions to Further Promote the Reform of Press and Publication System, issued in April. The document has set clear principles and schedules of the restructuring of the press and publications sector, according to the paper.

Statistics show that as of September, China has established 26 publication groups at provincial level, 24 State-owned Xinhua publication groups, three periodicals publication groups and 49 newspaper operation groups.

The reform for the newspaper industry has actually been ongoing since 2003, with the overhaul of the organizational structures of central newspapers. The CJAS case is a signal that system reform of State-owned newspapers and periodicals will accelerate in China, said the weekly.

The GAPP also monitored newspapers? advertising content. In 2007, two newspapers based in Jilin and Hebei province were banned from posting drug-related advertisements for 30 days. The other two, based in Hainan and Shandong, received the same penalty for seven days, the official said.

GAPP also ordered the papers to overhaul their advertising service management.

Source : Konaxis

The newspaper issued on previous National Days, especially in the “parade” year become an object chased by collectors. People’s Daily on founding ceremony day was rated up to tens of thousands, many people have focused on the newspapers issued on the day of the sixtieth anniversary of the National Day.

It is not unusually to see postings looking for newspapers online and China papers collecting forum specially opened up a special trade zone of “newspapers on sixtieth anniversary of National Day”. How much are People’s Daily on founding ceremony worth? The highest price of online shops selling papers from founding ceremony day to 2008 October “National Day newspaper” is up to 60,000 yuan, with the average unit price of 1,000 yuan for each newspaper. A net user posted the prices of silky versions of People’s Daily on 50th anniversary of the founding ceremony-October 1 and 2, a total of four sets, and the starting prices of one set is 3999 yuan.