HONG KONG, November 30, 2012 – Hong Kong’s premier English language newspaper South China Morning Post is proud to announce that it has won four top awards in the Asian Digital Media Awards held in Kuala Lumpur on 28 November.

The awards, under the auspices of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) and in conjunction with Digital Media Asia, include:

Best in Online Media, Gold Award (newspaper websites): www.scmp.com
Best in Online Media, Gold Award (magazine websites): www.elle.com.hk
Best in Online Video, Gold Award: Helene Franchineau, Online Video Reporter, South China Morning Post.
Best in Online Infographics, Bronze Award: South China Morning Post.

“The South China Morning Post is proud to win these digital media awards,” said Robin Hu, Chief Executive Officer of SCMP Group “It is recognition of the skill and hard work of our Online Editorial team and Digital Media team in producing a top quality website.”

WAN-IFRA created the Asian Digital Media Awards, with more than 50 media companies from 16 countries across Asia and the Middle East participating, to recognize the best examples of how individuals and organisations have embraced emerging technology and concepts in Asia.

WAN-IFRA is the global organisation representing the world’s press, in all more than 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries.

It has been a year of awards for the South China Morning Post. It picked up 11 awards in the Society of Publishers in Asia Editorial Awards 2012. It also took 10 awards at the Human Rights Press Awards, as well as nine awards in the Society of News Design’s news design competition.

“These awards also recognize that the South China Morning Post is meeting and excelling at the challenge of establishing a high-profile place in the evolving digital media world,” said Etienne Maccario, Director, Digital Business Development “SCMP.com is a modern, fresh and socially driven website, and establishes a high standards starting point for our company, as we embark upon the development of many more exciting digital products.”

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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 internationally recognised 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, analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. The South China Morning Post received 55 awards in 2011 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other titles in 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 further information please contact: communications@scmp.com For media queries please contact: Jennifer Shay Head of PR and Corporate Communications / South China Morning Post Publishers Limited Email: jennifer.shay@scmp.com / +852 2680 8132 Direct Website: www.scmpgroup.com

Hong Kong, October 15, 2012 – Hong Kong’s premier English language newspaper South China Morning Post announced today that it now offers limited free access to its newly rebuilt and redesigned website, SCMP.com.

The subscriber-only site SCMP.com was rebuilt, redesigned and relaunched in late August, with significant improvements to content and functionality. The site will now allow metered access to non-subscribers, enabling each visitor to view four articles for free per month behind the paywall. A further bonus of four more articles per month will be available to visitors who register their email address.

This is a significant change for the site, which has succeeded in maintaining a loyal paid subscriber base since 2002. Many prominent global news sites, including the New York Times and Financial Times, have recently made the reverse transition from free to paid access, employing a meter.

“The most significant impact of this move,” said Robin Hu, Chief Executive Officer, SCMP Group, “is that we are now searchable and shareable, which is vital for online news consumers today. Although total access will continue to be paid, now anyone interested in our insightful Hong Kong and China news can find us, click us and try us out. From a business point of view, this opens up a much bigger universe for us.”

Unique visitors have grown four times prelaunch levels and pageviews to the paid site have already increased almost threefold since the relaunch. Today’s introduction of metered free access is expected to increase pageviews even more dramatically. Enhanced and more frequently updated content, more intuitive navigation, easier social sharing and smarter article links, plus the availability of an optimized mobile edition at m.scmp.com, have all contributed to a richer and more satisfying user experience.

Further content enhancements include a powerful easy to search archive service that gives readers instant access to 10 years’ content or 750,000+ articles within the South China Morning Post library. The site also features a unique Homepage time machine, recalling the exact Homepage as it appeared up to seven days before.

Photos play a prominent role in the new site. Aside from a generally more attractive visual presentation and a longer page length, the new SCMP.com features a large-format photo gallery that is updated real-time and provides themed photojournalistic essays and easy search options. South China Morning Post’s award winning infographics will also capitalize on the new SCMP.com’s more visual and interactive design capabilities.

Social media plays a stronger role in the new site, which aside from enabling easy share on Facebook, Twitter and Google ⁺, will also introduce a major cast of new bloggers including an exclusive English-language blog from China’s number one blogger Han Han, whose irreverent views of China affairs and the youth generation have captivated a huge online following.

Subscribers, who have full access to both the site and its mobile version from only HK$999 a year, also enjoy a host of other benefits. Daily news alerts begin with a comprehensive morning newsletter to highlight the day’s headlines, an evening newsletter to succinctly wrap up stories as they’ve transpired through the day, and breaking news alerts. Readers can also check out what topics are trending online and in the social sphere.

The South China Morning Post has long held a globally respected position as the most trustworthy and insightful source of information in Hong Kong and China. The revamped SCMP.com is part of its continued effort to uphold its legacy of journalistic excellence, by acknowledging readers’ need for speed, continual updates, richer content and multiple-platform access.

The South China Morning Post website can be viewed at www.scmp.com, the mobile version at m.scmp.com and a full product tour can be seen at www.scmp.com/reborn.

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The New SCMP.com Offering

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 internationally recognised 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, analysis and opinion, multimedia articles and interactive forums. The South China Morning Post received 55 awards in 2011 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other titles in 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 further information please contact: Email: communications@scmp.com For media queries please contact: Jennifer Shay Head of PR and Corporate Communications / South China Morning Post Publishers Limited Email: jennifer.shay@scmp.com / +852 2680 8132 Direct Website: www.scmpgroup.com

Hong Kong, September 17, 2012 – Hong Kong’s premier English language newspaper South China Morning Post announced today the much anticipated hire of two seasoned editorial heavyweights to boost its newsroom.

Supporting the print newsroom, 16-year Reuters veteran Brian Rhoads has been hired to take over as Managing Editor, reporting to Editor-in-Chief Wang Xiangwei. Mr. Rhoads previously held various senior positions at Reuters, including a 7 year stint as Bureau Chief, China, based in Beijing. He also held the position of Managing Editor, Americas, based in New York and Managing Editor, Asia, leading a multimedia team of over 700 staff. Most recently, he was Bureau Chief, Greater China, based in Hong Kong.

Mr Rhoads is a Stanford University graduate in Political Science and speaks fluent Mandarin.

Supporting the digital newsroom, ex-Daily Mail Online Managing Editor Sarah Graham joins the South China Morning Post team as Managing Editor, SCMP.com to support the newly relaunched site and other digital products. Under Ms Graham’s management, Daily Mail Online underwent a successful transformation in 2008 to become the world’s most popular news website, attracting over 45 million viewers a month.

Ms Graham began her 14-year career in a range of UK-based newspapers, and joined the Daily Mail in 2006. At the South China Morning Post, she will assist Online Editor Wang Feng to manage the digital news team.

Both the South China Morning Post and its subscription-access site SCMP.com have been revamped in the past eighteen months to reflect the needs of today’s newsreader.

SCMP.com was rebuilt, redesigned and relaunched in late August, with significant improvements to speed, content, stability, functionality and mobile accessibility. User feedback to the new site has been extremely positive, and site visits have consistently more than doubled the levels achieved prior to the relaunch.

The print edition of the South China Morning Post maintains a loyal readership of 399,000* and a stable circulation of 108,000**. The newspaper also recently added a mobile website edition at m.scmp.com, filling out its digital portfolio, which also includes a native iPad app.

Wang Xiangwei, the SCMP’s Editor-in-Chief remarked, “The South China Morning Post not only has a greatly valued past heritage; we also have an exciting future ahead of us. Our passion is to deliver the highest quality content, in the most reader friendly formats across all platforms. That means having the right systems, the right technology etc, but most importantly, the right people. I think our ability to attract such world class talent demonstrates the strength of our brand globally, and enables us to continue to build the SCMP legacy for many decades to come.”

The South China Morning Post is widely recognized as the most trustworthy and insightful source of information in the Hong Kong and China region. Winning 55 global, regional and local news excellence awards in the past year, the SCMP has a reputation for exposing hidden stories on Hong Kong and China issues, from being the first newspaper to print excerpts of the controversial Li Peng diaries, to exposing the scandal behind China hospitals profiting from stem cells harvested from induced abortions, an article that won a globally coveted journalism award.

The South China Morning Post website can be viewed at www.scmp.com, the mobile version at m.scmp.com and a full product tour can be seen at www.scmp.com/reborn.

* Statistic from Nielsen Media Index Year end 2011
** HKABC audited circulation figure

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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 55 awards in 2011 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com

For further information please contact: Email: communications@scmp.com

Hong Kong, August 31, 2012 – Hong Kong’s premier English language newspaper South China Morning Post launched today its newly rebuilt and redesigned website, SCMP.com.

The site, which continues to be largely subscriber-only access, has been brought up to date with significantly enhanced and more frequently updated content, more intuitive navigation, easier social sharing and smarter article links. A key new addition includes the availability of an optimized mobile edition at m.scmp.com, which can be accessed by subscribers on any internet-enabled smartphone.

Further content enhancements include a powerful easy to search archive service that gives readers instant access to 10 years’ or 750,000+ articles. For more recent searches, an innovative new feature is the Homepage time machine, which enables users to view each day’s homepage exactly as it was seen up to seven days prior.

Photos play a prominent role in the new site. Aside from a generally more visual presentation and a longer page length, the new SCMP.com features a large format photo gallery that is updated real-time and provides themed photojournalistic essays and easy search options. South China Morning Post’s award winning infographics will also capitalize on the new SCMP.com’s more visual and interactive design capabilities.

Social media plays a stronger role in the new site, which aside from enabling easy share on Facebook, Twitter and Google +, will also introduce a major cast of new bloggers including a blog in English language from China’s number one blogger Han Han, whose irreverent views of China affairs and the youth generation have captivated a huge online following.

South China Morning Post’s Digital Editor, Wang Feng, was newly appointed in April this year to spearhead the content direction for the site. Previously an editor for Thomson Reuters Chinese News Service and an International Editor at Caijing magazine, Wang Feng was hired to deliver quality regional news 24/7 to an audience of Hong Kong and China watchers all over the world.

He remarked; “Our new site is not only built on a much more robust platform, giving our readers a better experience, it’s also packed with more content. Content that’s been designed especially for online to capitalize on the latest visual and presentation capabilities.”

“Now we can tell our stories in a richer and more graphic way, and drive readers to stories that are more relevant to them. We’ll be right at the point of action and deliver news more rapidly. We’ll tap the pulse of the community through social sharing. We’ll also be providing a better email notification system, with a morning newsletter to highlight the day’s headlines, an evening newsletter to succinctly wrap up stories as they’ve transpired through the day, and breaking news alerts. Readers can also check out what topics are trending online and in the social sphere.”

Mr Robin Hu, SCMP Group’s CEO, commented, “We are very excited to introduce the new SCMP.com. This is a much improved site with considerable potential to grow locally and overseas, especially given the global demand for news in our region. Online readers are increasingly used to paying for quality content, and we have been running a successful subscription model since the site originally launched in 1996. We believe the site offers excellent value, and together with the new mobile edition, plus Print and iPad editions, we now have a deeper portfolio of products which each deliver valued content and a unique experience.”

The site can be viewed at www.scmp.com, the mobile version at m.scmp.com and a full product tour can be seen at www.scmp.com/reborn.

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About The SCMP Group

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 55 awards in 2011 for editorial excellence. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, LuxeHomes, Classified Post, JiuJik, smartjob.com, and the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, CosmoGirl!, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

Media enquiries: Email: communications@scmp.com

Hong Kong, August 22, 2012 – SCMP Group Ltd (SEHK:583) announced today the interim results for 2012. Net profit for the first half of the year was $184.0million, compared with $249.0million for the same period in 2011. Revenue for the first half was $458.1million, 3% higher than last year.

The increase in revenue was mainly driven by higher advertising sales from its magazine publishing business, while revenue from its newspaper publishing business for the six months ended 30 June 2012 was flat to last year at $370.4million.

However, the net profit of the group from normal business operations (taking out the fair value gains on investment properties), dropped 35% to $61.9million as compared with first half last year, largely due to a decline in recruitment services revenue, a reduction in IPO advertising revenue and an increase in operating expenses, which included the staffing resources to support the group’s growing digital portfolio.

Earnings per share declined to 11.8cents from 16.0cents for the same period the year prior. Dividend payable per share will be 3.0cents.

The overall strength of its newspaper products continued as the un-audited first half 2012 HKABC* circulation figures for South China Morning Post and Sunday Morning Post increased by 7% and 10% to 108,881 and 89,212 respectively as compared with same period last year. Its magazines division reported growth in advertising revenue across all titles.

CEO Robin Hu remarked “Economic jitters caused by the weakening of the China economy and the Eurozone crisis have had some impact during the first half of 2012. Nonetheless, we managed to deliver steady results and are carefully priming our business to ensure financial stability in the second half. We are fortunate to see growth in the luxury retail sector, and have had success in our magazine publishing and contract printing businesses. We’re weathering challenges with resilience, while continuing to roll out both new and enhanced digital media products to meet changing media consumption behaviour.”

The group recently extended its partnership with Hearst Magazines International in the form of joint venture company, SCMP Hearst Hong Kong Ltd, to publish ELLE and Elle.com.hk. This added to an existing strong line up of women’s magazines, Cosmopolitan, CosmoGirl! and Harper’s Bazaar.

The group also recently extended a contract printing agreement with the local Chinese free newspaper am730 to a sizeable long term contract starting Q3 2013.

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About The SCMP Group

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 55 awards in 2011 for editorial excellence. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, LuxeHomes, Classified Post, JiuJik, smartjob.com, and the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, CosmoGirl!, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

Media enquiries: Email: communications@scmp.com * Hong Kong Audit Bureau of Circulations Ltd

Hong Kong, June 20, 2012 – The South China Morning Post has for over a hundred years prided itself on its trusted and authoritative reporting. This remains our legacy, our strength and our purpose.

We staunchly defend the press freedom we enjoy in Hong Kong and freedom of speech among all its citizens, especially among our own reporters.

Recent local media reports regarding our coverage of hanging of dissident Li Wangyang have called into question our integrity and willingness to report openly on a sensitive matter.

In fact, the story was reported extensively in our newspaper, in no less than three front pages, two leaders, plus several other prominent positions including two articles by the Editor-in-chief, Wang Xiangwei. However, on the day the news broke in other media, the Editor-in-chief gave priority to another news item, until more facts and detail surrounding the circumstances of this case could be established. This is regular and responsible editorial practice for a trustworthy news organization.

We assure our readers that factual, balanced and investigative reporting will always be our focus.

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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 55 awards in 2011 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.

Hong Kong, June 19, 2012 – SCMP Group Ltd (SEHK:583) and Hearst Magazines International, a unit of Hearst Corporation, today announced the formation of joint venture company, SCMP Hearst Hong Kong Ltd to publish ELLE and related titles, its website, the Car and Driver website, as well as taking on further custom publishing business from 3^rd July 2012.

This move further reinforces the longstanding relationship SCMP Group Ltd has with its joint venture partner Hearst Corporation. The two companies began their publishing venture in Hong Kong with the launch of the Hong Kong edition of Cosmopolitan in 1984, followed by Harper’s Bazaar in 1988, and CosmoGIRL! in 2001. The three titles have now become Hong Kong’s leading women’s magazines in respective market segments.

ELLE, a brand owned by Lagardere Active, is the world’s largest fashion magazine brand with 43 international editions reaching over 21 million people across the globe from the UK to the USA, Europe to Africa, South America, Russia, Asia and the Middle East.

Adding ELLE to its magazine portfolio ensures that SCMP Hearst will cement its position as the premier publisher of quality international lifestyle publications in Hong Kong.

Duncan Edwards, president and CEO of Hearst Magazines International, said, “Through our partnership with SCMP, we are already publishing a very successful edition of Cosmopolitan and we’re confident that this move will take ELLE in Hong Kong to even greater success than before.”

Josephine Chan, director for SCMP Magazines Publishing Ltd added, “It’s a very natural fit for us to welcome ELLE into our portfolio of magazine titles. We’ve enjoyed a great partnership with Hearst over the years, and our existing titles continue to grow from strength to strength, both in print and digital. We have a dedicated team that knows the fashion, beauty and style market in Hong Kong better than anyone, and they’re all excited to be able to both leverage and grow their expertise with ELLE.”

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About The SCMP Group

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 55 awards in 2011 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, Luxehomes, Classified Post, JiuJik, smartjob.com, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.

About Lagardère Active

Lagardère Active is one of Lagardère SCA’s four corporate branches, together with Lagardère Publishing (books), Lagardère Services (press distribution and services) and Lagardère Unlimited (marketing and management of sports broadcast rights, talent representation for athletes and artists). Creator of multimedia content, Lagardère Active has leading positions in the businesses it operates, including magazines publishing, audio-visual (radio, TV and TV production), digital (pure players sites, mobile applications and tablet applications) and advertising.Lagardere Active, the number one of French Magazine Publisher and owner of the ELLE brand and its derivatives, licenses them:
– To Hearst in 14 countries (corresponding to 15 editions of ELLE).
– To 26 other partners (corresponding to 27 editions of ELLE).
The ELLE network today includes 43 international editions and the ELLE Decoration network includes 25 international editions.

About Hearst Magazines International

As the largest U.S. publisher of magazines worldwide, Hearst Magazines International, a unit of Hearst Corporation, publishes more than 300 editions for distribution in more than 100 countries. Major titles include powerful brand equities like Cosmopolitan and ELLE, both international super-brands with more editions than any other women’s magazines in the world; ELLE DECOR, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Harper’s BAZAAR, Popular Mechanics, and Seventeen. In addition, Hearst Magazines International publishes other titles through joint ventures, including Men’s Health and Runner’s World in the U.K., Grazia and Madison in Australia, and The Robb Report in Russia and China. In Great Britain, a wholly-owned subsidiary, Hearst Magazines UK, publishes 24 magazines and 22 websites. Hearst Magazines publishes 20 titles in the U.S.

For enquiries please contact: Media Enquiries: Director of Marketing Anne Wong communications@scmp.com

Hong Kong, June 11, 2012 – South China Morning Post last night reaffirmed its legacy of editorial excellence with the winning of five top prizes and six honourable mentions at the Society of Publishers in Asia Editorial Awards 2012.

South China Morning Post dominated in the breaking news category with two wins; top prize went to Shi Jiangtao and Will Clem for their insightful report on the Wenzhou rail disaster and runner up prize went to Clifford Lo, Simpson Cheung, Jennifer Ngo, Lo Wei, Amy Nip, Olga Wong and Yvonne Liu on their ensemble reporting on the Mongkok fire tragedy.

Shi Jiangtao also won top honours in Environmental Reporting for his report with Paul Mooney on Heavy Metals, an expose on the devastating impact of heavy metal mining in China. Simon Scarr, already a multiple award winner for his infographics in the South China Morning Post, chalked up another accolade at the SOPA Awards with his “7 Billion Who Shape The World” work.

SCMP long-time cartoonist Harry Harrison earned top Editorial Cartooning recognition for his Beijing Spring series, and Denise Tsang, Senior Business Reporter, won the Business Reporting award of excellence for her reports on “The Cost of Making it in Guangdong”.

Further honourable mentions went to Neil Gough, for “Family Turmoil at the House of Ho” in the Scoop Award category and Cheung Chi Fai for “Secret Village Land Deals” in the Investigative Reporting category. “90 Years of Communism in China” gave Alex Nicoll, Stephen Case, Simon Scarr and Joe Lo an honourable mention for best Multimedia News Presentation, and Catherine Tai, Post Magazine’s art director received a mention for her magazine design for the 10th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Jennifer Huang also earned a mention in the lifestyle coverage category for her article about lead contaminated ceramics, “Poisoned chalices”.

The Society of Publishers in Asia is a non-profit regional body incorporated in Hong Kong in 1982. Its board and awards sub-committee comprise editors, executives and academics in the field of publishing and journalism across Asia, and entries for the Awards span regional editions of the top name international newspapers, news agency services plus local and regional titles. Over the past few years, South China Morning Post has consistently ranked amongst the highest in number of accolades received by a single publication in the SOPA Awards, reinforcing its position as one of the most respected newspapers for editorial excellence in the region.

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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 55 awards in 2011 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
communications@scmp.com

Hong Kong, May 2, 2012 – Hong Kong based SCMP Group (SEHK:583) announced today the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer, to take over from Ms Kuok Hui Kwong from 25^th June 2012.

Mr Robin Hu, 53, began his career in the Information Technology sector in the early 80s, and was until recently Senior Executive Vice President, Chinese Newspapers Division and Newspaper Services Division for Singapore Press Holdings, where he spent the past 8 years. In that role, he was responsible for managing the group’s three national Chinese dailies, Lianhe Zaobao (联合早报), Lianhe Wanbao (联合晚报), Shin Min Daily (新明日报) and mypaper (我报), a bilingual free newspaper, as well as overseeing the group’s various newspaper, event cum exhibition and magazine operations, in addition to China business development.

Mr Hu commenced his China experience as the Regional Director (China) for the Singapore Economic Development Board based in Shanghai and Suzhou, between 1995 and 1998. In 2000, he moved to Beijing and later Hong Kong and joined Asiacontent.com Ltd where he successfully launched many vertical portals, including China.CNET.com, mtv-china.com, eonline.com.cn and DoubleClick China.

“Robin brings to the SCMP Group a rare combination of media expertise, in-depth operational know-how of the publishing and IT industries, plus hands-on digital media and China knowledge,” said Ms Kuok Hui Kwong, whom Mr Hu will be replacing. Ms Kuok will retain her current Executive Director board position with the SCMP Group.

Mr Hu graduated from the University of Kent with a BSc in Mathematics and the University of Wales with an MSc in Computer Science. Regarding his new move, he remarked, “I am honoured to be given the opportunity to lead and contribute to the continued success of such a highly esteemed institution as the SCMP. I have the highest respect for the heritage of this company, its products and people. I look forward to getting in step with the thrilling heartbeat of this great city and the opportunities a growing Chinese economy can bring.”

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About The SCMP Group

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 55 awards in 2011 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, Luxehomes, Classified Post, JiuJik, smartjob.com, 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:

Media Enquiries:
Director of Marketing
Anne Wong
communications@scmp.com

Hong Kong, March 27, 2012 – SCMP Group Limited (SEHK:583) today announced the audited financial results for the year ended December 31, 2011.

Net profit attributable to shareholders for the year 2011 was $371 million, 26% above 2010. Net profit from normal business operations increased 34% from $128 million in 2010 to $172 million in 2011. Net revenue rose by 7% to $946 million, driven by higher revenues across all divisions.

A key factor attributing to the healthy result was the improved economic environment and strong advertising sales, which boosted the group’s newspaper division revenues. The group also saw a significant growth in digital advertising, growth in their Magazines Division and their marketing services business, a unit established in 2009. Cost control measures also contributed to the result.

Operating profit from principal activities increased 25% from $158 million to $198 million. Basic per share earnings increased by 26% to 23.7 cents and full year dividend paid and payable increased by 33% to 8 cents a share.

“2011 has been a very encouraging year for our group,” said the Managing Director & CEO Ms Kuok Hui Kwong. “We prepared ourselves for a changing industry and a cautious advertiser market and focused our efforts on strengthening our brands and our products, particularly South China Morning Post, as well as boosting our digital offerings. The net result shows we have done the right thing and have a very bright future ahead of us.”

The newspaper division has continued to perform strongly throughout the year. Combined full year print and online readership figures for 2011 for South China Morning Post, Sunday Morning Post increased from 388,000 to 396,000 according to the Nielsen Media Index 2011 Year End report. Despite competition from a flourishing free newspaper market and overall declining print readership in the industry, combined print-only readership of the two titles showed a healthy growth from 368,000 to 382,000. Audited circulation figures from HKABC also showed encouraging year on year growth in circulation for South China Morning Post and Sunday Morning Post, from 101,389 and 79,216 to 103,328 and 80,357 respectively for the July-Dec half-year timeframe.

“The SCMP Group is actively powering up to meet the challenges of change, and seizing new opportunities with both confidence and careful consideration” remarked Dr David Pang, Chairman of SCMP Group, “the foundation is being laid for our group to grow and establish a stronger presence as a media force, not just in Hong Kong, but on the global stage.”

-End-

About The SCMP Group

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 55 awards in 2011 for excellence in editorial, marketing and technical capability. Other publication titles of the Group include the Sunday Morning Post, Luxehomes, Classified Post, JiuJik, smartjob.com, the Chinese editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and CosmoGirl! magazines. For more information, please visit us at www.scmpgroup.com.



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Media Enquiries:
Director of Marketing
Anne Wong
communications@scmp.com