AFP, China's Hupu to launch sports service

Global news agency AFP and China's Hupu Sports Media Co. plan to launch a Chinese language sports service in the world's most populous country, executives from the companies said. AFP will provide stories, photos, video and graphics to Hupu, which will select items appealing to Chinese sports fans and deliver them along with its own content through a new dedicated website and applications for mobile devices. "Sports is one of the major sectors that we want to cover, and to improve the quality and quantity of our coverage," AFP chairman and chief executive Emmanuel Hoog said. "I'm very happy our production will be seen by more and more people in China," Hoog added at a signing ceremony in China's commercial hub of Shanghai. Shanghai-based Hupu, a private company, has an existing website, www.hupu.com, which began by offering basketball coverage but has since expanded to provide domestic and international sports news to its Chinese audience. "I look forward to bringing AFP's content to China in coming years. It will be good for both sides," Hupu Chief Executive Shawn Cheng said. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed. AFP has identified sports coverage as one of its top priorities as the company navigates the changing media environment. "More than 25 percent of our text coverage and 50 percent of our photo coverage is dedicated to sports," Hoog said. "It's something that we want to increase in the coming months and the coming years." AFP's news team has 1,500 journalists in 200 bureaux around the world, covering about 150 countries.