China Strengthens Printing, Reproduction and Distribution Oversight: Online Platforms, Grassroots Training and Online Bookstores in Focus

This notice is addressed to the press and publication bureaus of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government; the press and publication bureau of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps; the press and publication bureau of the Propaganda Department of the General Political Department of the People's Liberation Army; and the cultural market administrative law enforcement teams of Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Chongqing.

It calls for implementing the spirit of the National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work, building a favorable atmosphere for the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, and effectively strengthening the management of printing, reproduction and distribution. The requirements are set out as follows.

1. Align Thinking and Deepen Understanding

All localities should study the National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work and grasp the meaning of the statement that ideological work relates to the Party's future and destiny, the country's long-term stability, and the nation's cohesion and centripetal force. Printing, reproduction and distribution are key stages for solidifying and spreading ideological and cultural content. They carry a clear ideological character, serve as an important front for ideological management, and are a major field for cultural security. In the new period, deeper administrative reform aimed at streamlining administration and delegating power, rapid industry growth and wider use of digital network technology have raised the bar for management. Relevant authorities must recognize their duties and the complex environment, broaden their approach, and supervise with a strong sense of responsibility and mission.

1. Refine Mechanisms and Prioritize Innovation

A mix of routine patrols and surprise inspections is a key way to push printing and reproduction companies to apply systems such as letters of authorization and to help distribution units improve management of publication purchases and sales. Localities should review experience, keep innovating and build stronger long-term management mechanisms. Two points deserve priority:

(1) Improve networked management and sharing, and innovate management methods.

Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, Guangdong, Shandong, Yunnan and other places have set up printing and reproduction management network information systems, enabling online verification of letters of authorization within their regions and solving problems in issuance and filing. Other areas should learn from this and speed up management information platform construction. Beijing and Hebei, given their special location, have an urgent need for networked printing management. They should aim for substantive progress in the first half of next year and achieve interconnection as soon as possible. Other eligible regions should advance networked pilot programs. In addition, printing, reproduction and distribution authorities and comprehensive law enforcement departments should create an information and data sharing mechanism so that enterprise information is shared, penalty information is exchanged, and reward and punishment standards are consistent, thereby improving supervision.

(2) Improve team training and innovate grassroots work.

The printing, reproduction and distribution sector has many outlets, long chains and wide coverage, with supervision problems and tasks concentrated at the grassroots level. Localities should tie this work to the ongoing Party mass line education and practice activities, value grassroots foundations, and strengthen ideological education and professional training for grassroots managers. The General Administration will train provincial-level management personnel in batches and organize training for prefecture-level city personnel by region. Localities should make plans to train relevant managers from prefecture-level or key county-level cities in their jurisdictions in batches within two years. They should also go out and go deep to solve difficulties for frontline teams and enhance their effectiveness and cohesion.

1. Enforce Strict Supervision and Seek Practical Results

Printing, reproduction and distribution are a major force in cultural industry development. Localities should reject the one-sided view of valuing development over supervision and change the weak state in which correction is soft and penalties are absent. They should manage both development and supervision firmly, dare to take action, and dare to enforce rules. They must administer strictly according to law, ensuring that laws are observed and enforcement is strict.

(1) Inspect key regions strictly and keep correcting high-incidence violations.

Based on graded and classified management, localities should conduct more frequent and intensive inspections of areas with concentrated publication printing enterprises and read-only optical disc reproduction enterprises, areas with concentrated foreign-related printing and reproduction enterprises, and areas with frequent illegal acts, as well as publication wholesale markets and offline and online bookstores that receive many reports. They should continue to correct high-incidence violations such as printing publications without a printing and reproduction letter of authorization, printing internal-reference publications without a printing permit, illegally accepting subcontracted printing and reproduction business, irregular publication purchasing channels, and selling illegal and pirated publications. While punishing non-compliant enterprises seriously, authorities should put them on a blacklist for key supervision.

(2) Implement systems strictly and strengthen online bookstore supervision.

Localities should implement the online bookstore rules in the Regulations on the Administration of Publication and the Provisions on the Administration of the Publication Market. Under Article 36 of the Regulations on the Administration of Publication and Articles 17 and 27 of the Provisions on the Administration of the Publication Market, they should strengthen management of publication business activities conducted through information networks and online trading platform services, strictly control access, and further implement real-name registration and license display for online distribution units. They should strengthen interim and ex-post supervision of online bookstores, focus on inspecting publication online trading platforms, and carry out centralized clean-up and time-limited rectification for online bookstores without licenses or with incomplete licenses. Online bookstores should be urged to establish sound publication purchase and sales management systems and standardize operations. Case investigation should be intensified; any online bookstore selling illegal publications, pirated publications or illegal overseas publications must be investigated and punished as soon as discovered, with no leniency.

(3) Enforce accountability strictly and improve the law enforcement reporting and evaluation system.

Localities should follow the principles of territorial management and whoever is in charge is responsible, implement responsibility and accountability systems, and ensure responsibility by level and by person. They should maintain and improve the National Printing and Reproduction Administrative Law Enforcement Reporting and Evaluation System, use target-based assessment, and push grassroots managers to visit enterprises, patrol markets and handle cases. This should change the passive situation in which some managers do not want to handle cases, dare not handle cases, or do not know how to handle cases. Regions with good supervision results should be commended, while those with poor implementation or false or concealed reports should be criticized, so as to further improve the printing, reproduction and distribution supervision system.

Localities should treat printing, reproduction and distribution supervision as an important part of ideological management. They should actively seek support from local Party committee and government leaders, coordinate with relevant departments to form a joint force, and promptly report problems and good practices to the General Administration.

Source note: This article is republished from China Packaging Network (pack.cn). Original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-361854.html.