Wenzhou entrepreneurs: going global

Wenzhou is a city in Zhejiang whose natives are famous for the business acumen. Many of them have gone abroad in search of opportunities. There are urban legends about whole towns in Italy where traditional crafts such as shoemaking have been taken over by Wenzhou businessmen, who can make stuff cheaper than anyone else, even when they are in Italy.

Back to the Shanghai Daily story:

A businessman from Wenzhou City in eastern China's Zhejiang Province, has purchased a United Arab Emirates state-owned television station. It is the first TV station in the Middle East to be owned by a Chinese, according to a Wenzhou newspaper report yesterday.

The report did not say how much was paid for the station.

The new owner, Wang Weisheng, who left Wenzhou for the UAE more than 10 years ago, has changed the TV station name to "Arab Alibaba Business Satellite TV," the report said. Wang will be the chairman of the board.

The TV station start broadcasting on August 1...

...However, the station's audience share declined last year. Dubai Media City invited Wang to provide programs, TV series or films introducing Chinese scenes and news. Instead, Wang proposed to purchase the TV station.

Wang told the newspaper the new station would provide business information about China to help Chinese firms tap the Middle East market.

Fascinating. The whole report is on the Shanghai Daily website, linked below, where it will soon disappear behind a paywall. But the free wheeling web editors at the China Daily have republished it, and that link should remain valid for a long time.