China mounts fight against illegal CD publications

A total of 90 million illegal audio and video products were destroyed by law enforcement departments across China in 2002, said sources from the Chinese Ministry of Culture. In a unified campaign in 200 large and medium-sized cities at the end of last year alone, 18.29 million smuggled and pirated compact discs were seized and destroyed, said the sources. Some 223 major sales venues of illegal audio and video products were shut down in the past year. Thanks to its unique geographic location, Guangdong has served as an ideal location for marketing of audio and video products. 　Sales of legal audio and video products in the provincial audio and video town, a venue with marketing booths of 130 publishing houses, hit 1.6 billion yuan (about 193 million US dollars) last year, nearly doubling that in 2001. Enditem