China TV, US agency IMG launch sports venture Chinese state television and IMG, the U.S. sports marketing giant,announced a 20-year partnership Thursday to produce and broadcastsports in China. The deal, unveiled ahead of the Aug. 8 start of the BeijingOlympics, comes as Chinese and foreign broadcasters and promotersrace to tap into China's increasingly lucrative sports market. The new venture, CCTV-IMG Sports Management Co., will produce livesporting events and television and multimedia programming, thecompanies said in a statement. No financial information or detailsof planned sports events were released. The venture "will generate many different opportunities to enhancethe sports and media landscape in China," said IMG Chairman andChief Executive Ted Forstmann in the statement. IMG said it was thefirst non-Chinese company to form such a multiyear, multisportventure with CCTV. IMG Sports Media says it is the world's largest independentproducer of sports programming. CCTV, China's national broadcaster, operates 17 channels includinga 24-hour sports channel. The network says it commands an 80percent share of China's TV sports viewership. The popularity of professional sports, especially basketball andsoccer, has exploded in China in recent years. CCTV and some 50smaller Chinese broadcasters air National Basketball Associationgames.
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