THE chairman of Canadian publishing company CIM is to set up a HK$220 million media venture to tap into the booming Chinese-language market in Canada.
A Canadian representative of chairman Mr P. H. Yu said the venture would include television, radio and print media.
The plan would involve Mr Yu's recently acquired Ming Pao newspaper chain hiring, or transferring to Canada, more than 100 employees and securing several million dollars worth of real estate in Toronto and Vancouver.
It would also involve buying up existing electronic stations and circulating up to 30,000 copies of a new daily Chinese-language newspaper across Canada.
''The aim of the Hongkong management is to break into the multi-media business - not only newspapers, but also television and radio stations,'' Ming Pao 's Canadian president Mr Richard Yao said.
The company has projected it would hire, or transfer from Hongkong, up to 70 full-time employees for its Toronto operations, which are expected to begin circulating up to 20,000 copies of Canada's newest Chinese daily as early as next month.