A businessman from China's Zhejiang Province has bought a United Kingdom-based television station.

Ye Maoxi, president of the Xiking Group in Wenzhou, confirmed to Zhejiang Online, the Website portal of the east China province, that his company has bought out Propeller TV, a digital European free-to-air television station which was formed in 2006 in Yorkshire. Propeller TV won the Hot Bird TV 2008 Cinema Channel Award last November.

Ye, who is also chairman of the Wenzhou Chamber of Commerce in Beijing, said he grabbed the opportunity to acquire Propeller when he heard that the British government would no longer inject money into it because of the global financial crisis.

The purchase was completed last month, Ye said. However, the report did not say how much Ye paid for the deal.

Known as the King of the Printing Industry in China, Ye said he will convert Propeller TV into "a bridge that builds close ties from Asia to Europe."

The station's two channels will be set as "Brand China" focusing on introducing Chinese brands and big cities, and the "Key to China" covering cultural and artistic aspects of Chinese lives, according to the Xiking Group's official Website. Some of the programs will be broadcast in Chinese "if possible," said Ye.

(Shanghai Daily July 14, 2009)