Category: Press Release

SCMP Group Limited reports four-fold increase in net profit for first half 2011

Hong Kong, August 25, 2011 – The South China Morning Post Group Limited today announced the unaudited interim results for the six months ended June 30, 2011.

The operating results improved significantly as a result of careful cost management and a more positive economy. Total revenue was HK$443.5m compared with HK$411.7m in 1H 2010, an increase of 8%. Operating profit from principal activities increased 70% to HK$112.8m for 1H 2011. Net profit attributable to shareholders for the period was HK$223.7m, compared with a $52.3m during 1H in 2010. This year’s net profit included a property revaluation gain net of deferred tax of $128.2 million.

Basic earnings per share came to HK$0.143 per share, compared to HK$0.034 per share in 1H, 2010. Interim dividend per share was HK$0.04.

The newspaper publishing division, which generated 84% of the revenue and 72% of the operating profit, reported an increase of 9% increase in revenue and an 80% increase in net profit to $73.7m (from $41.0m for the same period in 2010). Revenue from advertising and marketing services increased by 11%, driven by a higher volume of display advertising in newspaper, glossy magazines and Post Magazine. Recruitment revenue increased 8%, mainly driven by strong growth in online recruitment advertisements.

The un-audited circulation of South China Morning Post in the first half of 2011 was estimated at 101,800 copies, same level as last year, and that of Sunday Morning Post was 81,300, increased by 3% as compared with the first half of 2010.

“The first half results are very encouraging, and reflect careful budget management and significant effort from the team to drive new revenue sources as well as to optimize the existing product portfolio.” said Ms Elsie Cheung, COO for the SCMP Group Limited. “Looking into the second half of this year, the Group will continue to strengthen its print and digital products for readers and deliver exciting new marketing opportunities for its advertising clients. Provided that the economy remains stable in the months ahead, the Group is confident that the business momentum will be maintained in the second half of 2011.



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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Adela Liew
Senior PR and Corporate Communications Manager
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]
 

South China Morning Post wins Jury Commendation for World Young Reader Prize in global WAN-IFRA Awards

Hong Kong, August 19, 2011 – The South China Morning Post is proud to announce that Young Post has been awarded a Jury Commendation in the Public Service category for this year’s World Young Reader Prize.

The World Young Reader Prizes, organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), are awarded annually to innovative newspapers that have devised the best project or activity in areas of young reader development. WAN-IFRA is the global organisation of the world’s press, representing more than 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries.

The award is bestowed on Young Post’s Heritage Detective series, in which schools were given the opportunity to field teams of reporters and photographers to develop stories. The best stories were published on Young Post’s front pages between May and June 2011.

The Jury of the award commented that “This was a great way to get young people with a heavy and academic workload out of the classroom and into their communities to find out about their heritage. It provided them with an opportunity to practise skills they do not normally have the chance to hone at school. It is impressive that the teams participated with no incentive other than to find out more about their heritage and get their stories published in the paper. We really liked the idea of assigning young reporters to gather their own information. We think that encouraging students to create teams is an excellent idea — it makes them more willing to participate and is likely to provide better results on average than a writing competition focused on individual authors. This project provided a great opportunity for young people to find out about and interact with their elders from a different perspective. It showed them that they have important lessons to learn from the older generation. It also helped them to understand the importance of heritage preservation and to respect the history of their city, an important value in this age of modernisation.”

Cliff Buddle, Acting Editor-in-Chief remarked that “Young Post is an English educational tool that is fun and stimulating. I am delighted that the Young Post team has been given this prestigious award amongst global news organisations. The award recognises their great work, and the ability of Young Post to capture the imagination of and to actively engage with our young readers.”



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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]
 

South China Morning Post launches XXIV 2011 in Simplified Chinese and English

Hong Kong, July 12, 2011 – Following the hugely successful first edition of XXIV in 2010 which received overwhelming demand from advertisers, the South China Morning Post is announcing the expansion of the annual publication to two versions – in simplified Chinese and in English – for 2011.

XXIV 2011 will bring in-depth interviews with some of Hong Kong’s most influential personalities on what the luxury of time means to them and feature their distinct choices for timepieces. Luxury timepieces are fast becoming the first choice as collectables and are increasingly a symbol of unique flair and taste for those who can afford the best in life.

The simplified Chinese version aims to capture the highest spending luxury consumers in Hong Kong – mainland visitors and business travellers. The English version will be distributed to Hong Kong’s elite.

Sophia Yu, Director of Advertising and Marketing Services remarked: “XXIV is more than just another watch magazine. When we developed XXIV, we set out to differentiate our magazine from others in the market by focusing more on the unique stories behind the influential and the successful and their priorities in life. This approach proved hugely successful, and gave our readers both fascinating editorial as well as insight into the personality of both watch and owner.”

She added: “Providing a version in simplified Chinese is a natural response to the demand we’ve had for targeting affluent mainland customers. Our editorial will also reflect the broad interests of both audience segments.”

The simplified Chinese version will be launched on 6 October 2011, and the English version on 9 November 2011.

The advertising booking deadline is 5 August 2011 for the simplified Chinese version, and 9 September 2011 for the English version. For more information, contact [email protected] or call a representative at 2565 2435.



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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]
 

12 Honours for South China Morning Post at the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Editorial Awards

Hong Kong, June 9, 2011 – The South China Morning Post won an impressive tally of 12 honours at the 2011 Society of Publishers in Asia Awards (SOPA) for Editorial Excellence.

Topping last year’s haul of 10 nods, the announcement was made last night at the annual SOPA Awards ceremony. The South China Morning Post scooped more awards than any other paper, with a total of six prizes and six honorable mentions.

The Post dominated the news photography and feature writing categories, taking both the award for excellence and the honorable mentions. Felix Wong took the top prize for his Qinghai earthquake coverage.

Ng Tse-wei and Paul Mooney’s reports chronicling the case of a mainland defence lawyer won an award for excellence in human rights reporting. A series of reports on the New Territories won Cheung Chi-fai and Olga Wong the award for excellence in reporting on the environment. Naomi Rovnick’s "The Rise and Fall of Taizinai" won the award for excellence in business writing and Shirley Yam won the award for excellence in opinion writing with her insights on listed companies in the mainland. Steve Ribet won the award for excellence in feature writing with his story "Death of a Tyrant" about the teenage murderer victimised by an oppressive village chief in China’s Shanxi province. The seventh award was attributed to a 12th September 2010 issue of Post Magazine for its excellence in magazine design.

In addition to honorable mentions in feature writing, photography, scoop writing and investigative reporting, the South China Morning Post also won recognition for the multi-media news presentation of its interactive eco-watchdog site CitizenMap.

Speaking on behalf of the SCMP, Cliff Buddle, Acting Editor in Chief said, "The pursuit of editorial excellence has always been our promise to our readers, and to equal our best year ever for SOPA award wins in 2011 is a testament to the sheer hard work and dedication of our team. I am delighted they have received recognition for their perseverance."

Appendix I
List of SOPA 2011 Awards won by the South China Morning Post

Excellence in Business Reporting – Award for Excellence
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: The Rise and Fall of Taizinai
Award Recipients: Naomi Rovnick, Toh Han Shih, Lulu Chen

Excellence in Feature Writing – Award for Excellence
Publication: Post Magazine
Title of Entry: Death of a Tyrant
Award Recipients: Steven Ribet

Excellence in News Photography – Award for Excellence
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: Qinghai Earthquake
Award Recipients: Felix Wong

Excellence in Magazine Design – Award for Excellence
Publication: Post Magazine
Title of Entry: September 12, 2010 Issue
Award Recipients: Steve Ellul

Excellence in Opinion Writing – Award for Excellence
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: Shining a Light on China’s Listed Companies
Award Recipient: Shirley Yam

Excellence in Reporting on the Environment – Award for Excellence
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: New Territories Series
Award Recipients: Cheung Chi-fai, Olga Wong

Excellence in Multimedia News Presentation – Honorable Mention
Publication: SCMP.com
Title of Entry: CitizenMap

Excellence in Human Rights Reporting – Honorable Mention
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: Mainland Lawyers
Award Recipients: Ng Tze-wei, Paul Mooney

Excellence in Feature Writing – Honorable Mention
Publication: Post Magazine
Title of Entry: Gathering Dust
Award Recipients: Paul Mooney, Jim Morris, Te-Ping Chen

Excellence in News Photography – Honorable Mention
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: Discovery of the First Body in Ma Tau Wai Collapse Block
Award Recipients: Sam Tsang

The Scoop Award – Honorable Mention
Publcation: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: PLA
Award Recipient: Greg Torode

Excellence in Investigative Reporting – Honorable Mention
Publication: South China Morning Post
Title of Entry: Clubs
Award Recipient: Vivian Kwok

Appendix II
Full list of 2011 Society of Publishers in Asia Awards for Editorial Excellence

Publication
Award of Excellence
Honorable Mention
Grand Total
South China Morning Post
6
6
12
Apple Daily Hong Kong
3
2
5
Apple Daily Taiwan
–
2
2
artech
1
–
1
Bloomberg News /
Bloomberg Businessweek
–
1
1
Business Weekly
2
–
2
Central News Agency –
News.com
1
–
1
CommonWealth Magazine
1
3
4
Dinos Alive!
1
–
1
Female
–
1
1
Financial Times
1
4
5
FT Chinese.com
1
–
1
Global Views Monthly
–
1
1
Hong Kong Economic Journal
–
1
1
International Herald Tribune
4
1
5
Jakarta Globe
2
4
6
Life Magazine
–
2
2
Ming Pao
2
1
3
MINT
1
–
1
Newsweek
1
–
1
Phnom Penh Post
2
2
4
The New Paper On Sunday
–
1
1
The Straits Times
2
2
4
The Wall Street Journal Asia
1
1
2
Thomson Reuters
1
2
3
TIME Magazine (Asia Edition)
3
–
3
TIME.com
1
–
1
Yazhou Zhoukan
3
2
5
Grand Total
40
39
79




Celebrating the Post’s wins are (back row from left to right) social media editor Yolanda Ma; acting editor-in-chief Cliff Buddle; China editor Ting Shi; photo editor Yves Sieur; senior editor S. K. Witcher; senior art director Troy Dunkley; (front row left and right) and head of graphics Stephen Case; opinion page editor Robert Haddow.

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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]

South China Morning Post celebrates relaunch with a million dollar prize promotion

Hong Kong, June 9, 2011 – The South China Morning Post announced an unprecedented promotional initiative entitled "Summer Prize Celebration", in which over HK$1m of prizes are to be won through a three-way play mechanic.

Included in the prizes are a brand VW New Beetle Cabriolet 2.0, a Champagne Sunset cruise party for 30 on a Chinese junk, a 12 person dinner party and wine tasting at the Marriott, a set of Taylor Made golf clubs and a golf simulator and drinks party for 100, and a wine connoisseur’s prize of a bottle of Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1990 (worth HK$15,000) plus 48 bottles of fine wine and a 32 bottle wine cooler.

The promotion, which lasts for a 21 day period from Monday 13th June 2011, includes a Collect and Win element to enter a lucky draw for 10 top prizes. Readers collect a picture stamp, placed adjacent to the City section masthead, for three consecutive days and mail in to enter.

The second tier involves a Text and Win mechanic, in which the readers text in the lucky code from the picture stamp to win one of 13 prizes available each day. The third tier then offers an instant win prize for all those who enter the Text and Win.

"Our over-the-top prizes reflect a luxury, fun or indulgent summer experience, and give our readers a good chance of winning something they’d really love to receive. Our grand draw prizes range from staying in an opulent specialty suite at the Shangri-la hotel, to a four person spa getaway in Phuket, and from a business class VIP trip to Singapore Resorts World? Sentosa to a helicopter flight in for a night at the Hong Kong Peninsula hotel," said Ms Elsie Cheung, Chief Operating Officer for the South China Morning Post.

"We haven’t done any promotions of such a major scale before as far as I can remember, and it comes hot on the heels of our successful re-launch. What we hope to do is to let our readers enjoy a bit of summer fun, and hopefully encourage pick-up by new or lapsed readers, giving them an opportunity to experience the all-new South China Morning Post. From the positive feedback we’ve had so far about the paper, we think they’ll get hooked on our fresh new look and content."

The promotion is supported with an extensive marketing campaign on print, radio, eDMs and direct marketing, point of sale, Focus media and at Pacific Coffee outlets throughout Hong Kong.



Summer Prize Celebration

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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]

South China Morning Post wins first and second prizes at prestigious global INMA 2011 Awards Competition

Hong Kong, May 18, 2011 – South China Morning Post received first and second prizes at the prestigious INMA Awards presentation in New York on 17th May, the news industry’s top marketing awards.

The awards were presented at the 81st Annual INMA World Congress at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers in New York at a dinner attended by over 200 media executives from around the world.

The 76-year-old INMA Awards competition generated 550 entries from 143 market-leading newspapers in 30 countries. Judging for the ten award categories was done by an international panel of industry experts involved with media companies, advertising agencies, trade magazines, and more. Judges came from Argentina, Brazil, Australia, Canada, India, Italy, Poland, Russia, Spain, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

Taking first prize for its category in "New brand/product/audience development" was the South China Morning Post‘s iPad™ brand launch campaign, "Today, tomorrow and the next day." Devised by their in house creative director, Mr. Wayne Knowles, the campaign was spearheaded by a front page take over to launch the South China Morning Post‘s iPad™ app on the day of its inauguration. The advertisement featured the iPad™ app with the same day’s news as the true newspaper front page that followed it, an accomplishment made possible by preparing artwork after the day’s news was locked but before the paper was put to bed.

The second prize awarded to the newspaper was for its SCMP Marketing Services division, a unit set up specifically to assist advertisers with integrated marketing solutions. The prize category won was for "Marketing Solutions for Advertising Clients".

The fully integrated campaign "Redefining Cool" created for client Miele, was devised to help them launch their refrigeration solutions to a style conscious and affluent young crowd. Comprising a multi-media solution across many platforms and including print, online, mobile and an event, the campaign leveraged social media with a competition featuring a cool "Freeze-a-matic" iPhone? app as a downloadable device to capture images of beloved items customers most wanted to preserve. Images were emailed in and voted on through social media to win a prize. The "Redefining Cool" campaign was spearheaded by Ms Sylvia Lee, Head of SCMP Marketing Services. It won praise from the client and recognition from the INMA judges.

Commenting on the wins, Ms Anne Wong, Director of Marketing for South China Morning Post said: "We are deeply honoured to receive recognition from such an esteemed industry body as INMA. With such marketing excellence around the world, for us to receive two awards is a testament to our team’s devotion to marketing excellence, both for our own brand and for our advertisers."

South China Morning Post this week launched a new brand campaign "Make Every Day Matter" and a significant new revamp to the newspaper, which was very well received by an audience of nearly 200 advertisers at the inaugural presentation held at the Island Shangri-La on Monday 16th May.

The new South China Morning Post now features a significantly brighter, fresher new look, more intuitive navigation and much more content, including new columns and five new tabloid sections covering personal interest topics including money, health and wellness, food and wine, fashion and lifestyle, parenting and education.

Full details about the INMA awards can be seen at their website: http://www.inma.org/blogs/main/post.cfm/inma-unveils-top-news-industry-marketing-campaigns

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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]

South China Morning Post launches Paris Shopping Guide in Simplified Chinese

Hong Kong, May 13, 2011 – South China Morning Post announced the forthcoming launch of its Paris Shopping Guide, a simplified Chinese magazine to help advertisers capture the booming market of Mainland Chinese headed for Paris.

With a circulation of over 100,000, the publication entitled "巴黎风尚" will be distributed from 29th July in both key China cities and in strategic Paris locations. Copies will be made available through China Travel Services offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Suzhou, as well as departure lounges for multiple airlines. In Paris, it will be distributed through top tourism offices and hotels, plus the iconic upscale shopping mall Galeries Lafayette.

This magazine represents a unique opportunity for advertisers to target these valuable shoppers in their native language, while reaching them through a sympathetic and relevant editorial environment.

"This is a new product that ties together our unique strength and connections in the luxury market, our understanding of the important mainland consumer market and our well established publishing and distribution expertise" said Sophia Yu, Director of Advertising & Marketing Services for the South China Morning Post. "With our unique distribution network, we’ll be able to target our affluent shoppers both at home, in transit, while they’re information seeking and at their actual shopping destination."

The Paris Shopping Guide aims to help mainland shoppers find the best places to eat, shop, sightsee and enjoy all that the French capital has to offer. With tips, recommendations and suggested itineraries, it serves as a useful guide to accompany the travellers throughout their stay in Paris.

The advertising booking deadline is 24th June. For more information, contact [email protected] or call a representative at 2565 2435.

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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]

South China Morning Post launches LuxeHomes annual edition for Hong Kong’s luxury homebuyers

Hong Kong, May 12, 2011 – South China Morning Post announced the forthcoming launch on May 18th of the annual edition of LuxeHomes, following on from the successful launch of their bi-weekly magazine six months ago.

The bi-lingual annual is a comprehensive guide to properties and property news on Hong Kong’s luxury neighbourhoods, contemporary districts and emerging property hotspots. Featuring commentary from leading developers, it will also provide detailed pricing information and in-depth market analysis, plus details on new developments in the pipeline.

A total of 40,000 copies will be printed for a targeted distribution to subscribers of the South China Morning Post, plus distribution in premium residential districts and clubs, and a limited circulation targeting high end professionals and executives. Additional circulation targeting mainland investors is also planned.

Commenting on the new publication, Ms. Elsie Cheung, Chief Operating Officer for South China Morning Post said, "There is a gap for a comprehensive property bible that gives premium homebuyers and property investors a clear overview of some of the key developments in the market. Our LuxeHomes bi-weekly edition has proved very popular amongst readers and advertisers since its launch in November last year; readers are hungry for more information to help advice their purchase decisions. Our launch of the LuxeHomes annual edition is timely given the hot debate on what and when to buy in Hong Kong, and provides our readers with a helpful go-to source for more detailed insights and background information and analysis."

For advertising enquiries, contact [email protected] or call (852) 2565 2435.

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About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad™ and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]

The South China Morning Post launches new look and extensive new content on Monday, May 16th

Hong Kong, May 11, 2011 – The South China Morning Post announced a major re-launch of both the design and content of the region’s pre-eminent English language newspaper.

Premiering on Monday, May 16th, the new SCMP will feature a fresher, more vibrant design, enhanced news content throughout and five new tabloid supplements to provide extra-value daily reading.

The news content in each of the Main, City and Business sections has been upgraded with more columns and features and improved quick-access navigation. Each key section will feature a rapid read news digest bar and convenient colour highlights to draw readers quickly to important facts. The current national and international section is replaced with more prominent China, Asia and World sections which feature additional, enhanced content including a Talking Points editorial overview of the key news issues of the day, and a daily in-depth Focus article, among many other features.

Five new tabloid sections will cover personal interest hot topics, including money and investment, health and wellness, food and wine, lifestyle, fashion and shopping, plus parenting, family and education.

Acting Editor-in-Chief, Mr Cliff Buddle said, "We’re excited to move to the next stage of the South China Morning Post’s evolution. Hong Kong is a rapidly changing city and our readers have never been more engaged or vocal with their views. Here, people have many media options, but above all, they want a source they can trust for matters that relate to their location, values and interests. With our new content, we’ll be setting relevant and fresh agendas, contributing to public debate on significant issues and giving readers much food for thought."

"Our readers can still enjoy our world-class columns and well-researched OpEd articles. All the content they know and love us for is still there. The key difference is a more friendly and approachable look, and significantly more news they can use," he said.

The redesign, which was developed by world renowned newspaper design guru, Dr Mario Garcia, reflects the reader habits of today’s more interactive and fast paced society. Featuring more colour, extensive use of graphics and photojournalism, more eye-catching typography and more intuitive navigation, the new South China Morning Post makes use of the latest design know-how to help readers get to the news they want more efficiently.

"Readers from all walks of life will find something to stimulate their interests in the new SCMP," said Mr Buddle. "Our business news coverage remains the most respected by senior businesspeople in Hong Kong. Our newly expanded China section enables us provide our readers with more nuanced and detailed insights into this fascinating part of the world. And of course, each of the tabloid sections allows much more in-depth focus on areas of interest."

The relaunch of the South China Morning Post is complemented by a newly introduced brand tagline: Make every day matter. Chief Operating Officer, Ms Elsie Cheung remarked: "Our readers are smart, discerning, internationally-minded individuals who lead enormously busy lives. More than ever, they take an active role in the community, and are increasingly vocal on things that happen around them. Every decision they make, and the way they spend their time and money, comes down to the quality of information they get to help form their opinions and choices. Our role, and the role of media today in general, is more inclusive and interactive than ever before. Whether readers access our content in print, online, or on our iPad edition we hope to be a central hub for them to increase their knowledge, as well as debate, share and form those opinions."

Readers can check out the changes at the South China Morning Post on their launch website matters.scmp.com

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APPENDIX
About the sections:

SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST:

MAIN SECTION
We’ve refreshed our main section to make it more useful, more fascinating and more accessible for our readers. We’ll still offer our unique and insightful perspective of the day’s main news issues in Hong Kong, China, Asia and the World, but also more. With new, brighter styling and improved navigation, there will be even more interesting stories to read, plus engaging commentary, complemented by more photos and useful information graphics. We’ll have a new Talking Points section to get readers quickly briefed on the key issues of the day, plus an in-depth Focus of the Day feature story.

BUSINESS
Voted the top information source for Hong Kong’s most senior business decision makers, we will continue to provide excellent coverage of the business news of the day. Additionally there will be a whole host of new features, including a new markets and finance section, DealWatch data, the Insider column on internal share trades, plus more coverage on key sectors, the economy and local, regional and international business trends. Joining our popular host of columns will be a new weekly legal column, Point of Law, to help businesses with practical legal issues.

CITY
Our bright new City section includes the inside story, useful information and interesting opinions on the local news and issues that are vital to Hong Kong residents. From hot topics to cool new discoveries, City section will feature new, easy navigation, daily listings for those planning their social calendars, a new easy-to-use TV listings page, and CitySeen, which will get readers right into Hong Kong’s social scene with more daily coverage of the best events in town. Plus, readers stay posted on Saturday with City Weekend, featuring a new Weddings section, City Driving and Technology.

WEEKLY SUPPLEMENTS

MONDAYS FROM 16TH MAY – NEW!
Money Post
A no-nonsense look at how readers can make their money work harder. Money Post covers a wide range of financial insights, from specific sectors to stock tips, and from the trends in the economy to personal philanthropy. For advice on mortgages, personal finance and long and short term money making decisions, Money Post will help readers make sense out of making dollars.

TUESDAYS FROM 24TH MAY – NEW!
Health Post
Nurturing mind and body with useful information on health, medicine, diet and exercise, Health Post is the guide to living better in Hong Kong and finding newly discovered insights from overseas. Our expert writers dive deep into a wide range of information designed to help our discerning and health conscious readers lead healthier lives.

WEDNESDAYS
Property Post
A popular Wednesday tradition for the SCMP, our Property Post has become a must-read for expert views on Hong Kong’s red hot property market. Property Post is the trusted guide to the most desirable real estate in Hong Kong, plus a weekly window on new global property investment opportunities.

THURSDAYS FROM 19TH MAY – NEW!
Food and Wine
In the city that loves to sip, savour and celebrate the finest in culinary excellence, our Food and Wine guide brings you views from the kitchen to the restaurant table, every Thursday. In addition to our weekly recommended restaurants guide, Susan Jung, Jeannie Cho Lee and a host of highly- seasoned gourmands and wine afficionadoes will contribute to Thursday’s mouth-watering content.

FRIDAYS FROM 3RD JUNE – NEW!
LifeSTYLE
The guide to looking and feeling completely luxurious. From beauty blogs to boho bags and from gadgets to die for, to destinations to see before you die, LifeStyle gives our readers great ideas for spoiling yourself over the weekend, and both informs and inspires them for those stylish excursions in faraway places.

SUNDAYS
SUNDAY MORNING POST

Family Post – FROM 5TH JUNE – NEW!
Whether searching for schools, or for advice on feeding, nurturing and educating kids, today’s parents are some of the most involved and conscientious. So many questions bombard today’s families. Launching Sunday 5th June, Family Post will answer some of those questions every Sunday, pointing today’s busy readers to a more comprehensive view of parenting, education and family issues.

Post magazine
Our award-winning Post Magazine has been given a fresh new look. Continuing on our tradition of the city’s most fascinating and critical articles to get spark discussions every Sunday, our new design will make navigation easier, will include a few new features, including a new property page that gives a sneak peek into some of the local homes and neighbourhoods.

The Review
The Review is a comprehensive guide to the don’t-miss events and releases in the world of arts, music and culture in Hong Kong and around the world. Along with independent reviews for new DVDs, books, electronic games, cinema movies and music releases, we’ll have dedicated arts pages and useful new columns including updates from around the world. Each week we feature the Taste Maker of the moment, and look into new trends to better inform entertainment choices.



About South China Morning Post

First published in 1903, South China Morning Post is Hong Kong’s premier English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. With a reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong and China, it won 60 journalistic excellence awards in 2010. The newspaper is supported with a Sunday edition, Sunday Morning Post, an online edition at www.scmp.com, and an iPadTM edition. For more information of South China Morning Post, please visit www.scmp.com

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]




Products

Revamp

SCMP Group Limited reports five-fold increase in net profit from normal business operations

Hong Kong, March 17, 2011 – SCMP Group Limited (SCMP Group) today announced the audited final results for the year ended December 31, 2010.

Net profit attributable to shareholders for the year 2010 was $294 million, which more than doubled last year’s profit of $138 million. Excluding the impact of property revaluation gain, net profit from normal business operations recorded a five-fold increase from $26 million in 2009 to $128 million in 2010. The increase was led by a significant growth in the newspaper publishing business. Revenue for the Group rose 19% to $881 million. Revenues from both display advertising and recruitment services increased significantly in line with the upturn of the local economy and with management’s efforts to drive revenue. Operating costs before depreciation and amortisation showed a moderate growth of 4% mainly due to market driven staff cost increase, partly offset by savings in newsprint, rental and advertising & promotion expenses. The SCMP Group declared a final dividend of HK4 cents per share, together with HK2 cents interim dividend paid, full year dividend will amount to HK6 cents per share.

"Our recovery in 2010 was the result of a combination of diligent efforts to rein in costs and seek new business opportunities, as well as a healthy sustained recovery in the advertising, IPO and recruitment markets." said the Managing Director & CEO Ms Kuok Hui Kwong.

Revenue from advertising and marketing services increased 25%, mainly due to a higher volume of display advertising in the newspaper segment, followed by notices advertisement, glossy magazines, customized publishing and special execution services.

Recruitment revenue increased 43%. Print revenue rebounded strongly with higher advertising volumes in both Classified Post and Jiu Jik. Online recruitment revenue also recorded significant growth in 2010.

Combined full year readership figures for 2010 for South China Morning Post, Sunday Morning Post and print and online editions showed a 3% increase to 388,000.

"The SCMP Group has made substantial progress in strengthening our financial performance, as well as paving the way for future growth with a more robust portfolio of products," Ms Kuok said.

"Our efforts in 2010 were focused on building longer term revenue. Our aim is to continue to strengthen our brands, our print and digital products, our editorial content and our portfolio of services to deliver the best value for both our readers and our advertising clients."

-End-


About SCMP Group Ltd and South China Morning Post

SCMP Group Limited (SEHK: 583) is a leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Asia. Its flagship publication, South China Morning Post, is Hong Kong’s world renowned English language newspaper and has the city’s most affluent and influential readership. First published in 1903, the newspaper has developed an enviable reputation for authoritative, influential and independent reporting on Hong Kong, China and the rest of Asia. Available in print, iPad and online through scmp.com and e-reader editions, South China Morning Post reaches a global audience with daily breaking news, insightful analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. Striving to maintain the highest standards among the world’s quality newspapers, the South China Morning Post receives constant international recognition. It received 60 awards in 2010 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

For enquiries please contact:

Anne Wong
Director of Marketing
South China Morning Post
Email: [email protected]