(Yicai Global) Jan. 21 -- Shanghai media giant Oriental Pearl Group and developer Lingang Group held a groundbreaking ceremony today for Oriental Media City, a smart media industry park that is expected to have annual output worth CNY20 billion (USD3.1 billion) when completed.

Oriental Media City will sit at the heart of Lingang’s Pujiang International Science and Technology City and is scheduled for completion by 2025, The Paper reported. The size of the investment involved was not revealed.

Oriental Pearl said the project will leverage the resource advantages of its parent company, Shanghai Media Group, to provide content production, channel distribution and innovation incubation services. 

SMG was formed by the municipal government through the integration of local television and radio stations in 2001. It has 11 free-to-view TV channels, 15 subscription channels, 12 radio stations, as well as six newspapers and magazines. SMG also owns Yicai Global.

Oriental Media City will attract more companies to move in, with a focus on developing advanced technologies including fifth-generation wireless networks, ultra-high-definition video, artificial intelligence, cloud computing and the Internet of Things, SMG Chairman Wang Jianjun said at the groundbreaking ceremony.

Shanghai released guidelines on urban digital transformation on Jan. 4, aiming to complete the basic framework for developing the city into an international digital capital in the next five years. Shanghai will build a number of digital industry parks and online new economy ecology parks to foster digital-oriented innovation and entrepreneurship.

Editor: Tom Litting