Party newspaper People's Daily going public

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The online news portal of the official Communist Party of China newspaper People's Daily plans to raise about 527 million yuan ($83.52 million) through an initial public offering (IPO) on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

People.cn Co, which competes with commercially operated rivals, such as Sina Corp and Sohu, aims to raise cash by selling 69.1 million new shares, or 25 percent of its enlarged capital base, to fund expansion, according to a preliminary prospectus posted on the website of China's securities regulator.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission will vet People.cn's IPO application on Friday.

Beijing is encouraging IPOs by State-owned news websites.

China's State news agency Xinhua also plans to list its online portal in Shanghai to raise about 1 billion yuan, media reports said earlier.

People.cn faces "big challenges" from commercial websites, such as Sina and Sohu, which have benefited from the opening of the Internet services industry as well as ample funding, according to the prospectus.

People.cn, which is controlled by People's Daily and counts State-owned telecommunications giants, including China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, among its shareholders, plans to use the IPO proceeds to upgrade technology, develop mobile services and strengthen its editorial team.

Its net profit almost quadrupled to 81.6 million yuan in 2010 from a year earlier, with online advertising contributing to about half of the company's revenue.

CITIC Securities Co is underwriting the IPO.

Questions:

1. What is the name of the news portal?

2. How much do they plan to raise through an IPO?

3. Who is underwriting the IPO?

Answers:

1. People.cn

2. 527 million yuan

3. CITIC Securities Co

（中国日报网英语点津 Rosy 编辑）

About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.