Organizations and creative companies dedicated to Chinese cultural relics drew a great deal of attention from international visitors at the Licensing Expo, which concluded on Thursday.
Participating Chinese museums and cultural relics organizations at the Expo included the Palace Museum, China Agricultural Museum, Beijing Lu Xun Museum, Shanghai Museum, Chengdu Du Fu Thatched Cottage Museum, the Potala Palace Management Office of Tibet Autonomous Region, Dun Huang Academy and others.
"The display is actually fantastic, the products are beautifully designed and of high quality. What I really like is how some of the museums are modernizing their techniques for sharing the rich and deep culture of China," said Charles M. Riotto, President and CEO of the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association, the world's leading trade group for licensing marketing professionals with over 1,100 member companies worldwide.
Jessica Blue, the senior vice president of licensing at event organizer UBM Americas, told Xinhua: "China is the fastest growing market for licensing in the world. It's very important for Chinese brands to be represented here on the global platform."
Blue noticed that more visitors were viewing the Chinese exhibition area this year than last.
"People are very excited to see the offering from China. I hope Chinese brands will find some manufacturing partners and retail partners here, so they can expand their product offerings to the wider global community," She added.
New business formats and technologies are the sources of innovation and power for changes in China's culture industry, which has witnessed a dramatic transformation in both products and operation.
Supported by consumption innovation and upgrade, market expansion, as well as VR/AR and live broadcasting technologies, China's culture industry has made remarkable achievements in recent years.
"The time-honored traditional Chinese culture and arts are profound and influential. As the carrier of traditional Chinese culture, the 600-year-old Forbidden City is also known at the Palace Museum today, with unparalleled collections of cultural heritage resources," said Yu Zhuang, the Palace Museum's deputy director of the digital information department.
"We have been making continuous efforts to revitalize and promote Chinese culture, including replacing a limited number of static cultural and creative products with animated and 3D digital works to generate brand-new cultural experiences, leveraging initiatives from China's 'Internet + Culture' plans," he said. "Through digital innovation, the Palace Museum has managed to vitalize traditional Chinese culture and cultivate people's tastes for fine arts," he said.
The purpose of the China Art & Culture Properties venue at the expo was to help Chinese cultural relics organizations and creative companies to explore international markets, as well as to introduce the latest development of China's culture licensing industry to the world.
The Licensing Expo is the world's premier brand and art marketplace, offering exclusive insights into the players and trends that drive the 251.7 billion-U.S. dollar licensing business.
According to the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association, more than 480 exhibitors gathered in the three-day event this year, creating the largest, most diverse collection of properties and brands available for licensing worldwide.
