Dahe Media Co Ltd has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with MediaCorp Pte Ltd of Singapore.

According to the agreement, MediaCorp will acquire 154 million new shares from Dahe Media worth HK$89 million at the subscription price, making up 18.55 percent of Dahe's total shares.

"It is our development strategy to seek internationally reputable investors to further diversify our shareholder base and MediaCorp can support our vision to expand in the international market," said He Chaobing, chairman of Dahe Media.

Listed in Hong Kong in November 2003, Dahe Media is one of the leading outdoor media enterprises in China, offering a full spectrum of outdoor media services from the design and production of outdoor advertisements to rental and dissemination of advertising spaces throughout the country. Its network covers a dozen metros, including Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Xi'an, Urumqi, Wuhan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

"We are establishing the tie with MediaCorp with an aim to raise funds, learn from their advanced managerial experience and build a global marketing network," said Yang Jianliang, vice-president of Dahe Media.

"This is our first investment in equity in China, though we have had various kinds of cooperation with Chinese media since the 1970s," said Tan Peck Joo, executive vice-president of MediaCorp.

She added: "We are looking for more investment opportunities in China and are considering how much value we can bring to Dahe Media, not just how much profit we can make from the investment in it."

(China Daily February 20, 2008)