Internet giant Alibaba buys South China Morning Post
阿里巴巴收购南华早报
China's E-commerce giant, Alibaba Group, has bought the South China Morning Post and all other media assets from the SCMP Group. It's Alibaba's first media asset acquired outside the mainland.
The 112-year old newspaper, South China Morning Post, is one of the leading English language newspapers in Asia, but like many other print media, it has been suffering from the shrinking market.
Alibaba says in a statement that this cooperation will marry Alibaba's technology, with the editorial excellence of the SCMP. It hopes to help the newspaper in the digital age, and serve as a window for global readers to learn about China. It's good news to some readers.
The South China Morning Post has developed an image for having fair and objective news coverage.
The Alibaba Group's Executive Vice-Chairman Joseph Tsai, vowed in a public letter that they will uphold the journalistic principles of the newspaper. However, an expert has shared his doubts on that promise.
But, some readers think differently.
Over the last few years, Alibaba has invested a huge amount of money in the media industry, like the micro-bloging site Sina Weibo and the video website Youku Tudou.
Liu believes that by buying the SCMP, Alibaba is taking one step forward towards its big vision.
The South China Morning Post was previously owned by Malaysia-based Kerry Media. Liu believes, the share holders are likely to see good gains from this transaction.