Politics, Profit and Digital Prospect: Guangdong Provincial Publishing Group as a Case

A case study of the Guangdong Provincial Publishing Group has revealed that Chinese publishing groups are still firmly controlled by the party-state. Although regional governments could protect their economic interests in local publishing industry, political control from the central party-state is firmly installed. The propaganda role of the publishing industry may have declined after the onset of economic reforms, but the ability of the party-state to maintain its political control has not been weakened, and may have even been strengthened. In spite of the corporatization, China’s publishing houses were never intended to be pure business entities, and many continue to rely on monopolistic profits or government subsidies for their financial viability. The digital transformation in publishers is heavily shaped and constrained by the institutional problems of the publishing industry.