19 Nov 2010 12:37

Taobao, Hunan TV JV remodels Hitao as online retailer

Shanghai. November 19. INTERFAX-CHINA - Hunan Happy Taobao Culture Media Co., Ltd. (Happy Taobao), a joint venture between leading e-commerce platform Taobao.com and Hunan Province's sole broadcaster Hunan TV, plans to reposition its Web site Hitao.com as an online retailer, local media reported on Nov. 19.

Sun Zhenkun, Happy Taobao's general manager, told the 21st Century Business Herald that the move is intended to differentiate Hitao from Taobao's consumer-to-consumer (C2C) business and its business-to-consumer (B2C) platform Taobao Mall.

Happy Taobao launched Hitao in April this year. It currently operates as an online shop front, advertising products sold on Taobao's C2C and B2C platforms.

According to Sun, a fifth of Hitao's sales will come from foreign brands it has partnered with while the remainder will be goods advertised on Taobao. The company is looking to build upon the proportion of non-Taobao goods sold by seeking further foreign partnerships.

Hunan TV and Taobao jointly invested $14.64 million to set up Happy Taobao in December 2009, with a 51 percent stake and 49 percent stake respectively.

-YXY