Expo Area built to be international cultural industry hub

The Expo Area, which is located in Pudong New Area of Shanghai, aims to build a world-class cluster of cultural industries, local officials said at a conference on Wednesday.

The administrative committee of the Expo Area has signed a number of strategic cooperation agreements with enterprises such as SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center, Qingting FM and Dali Sports. These enterprises cover a wide range of industries, including sports, tourism, performing arts and music, showcasing the open and diverse environment in the Expo Area, said an industry expert.

The cultural venues and enterprises in the Expo Area didn't balk in the face of headwinds generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and they have seen fruitful results, according to local officials. For instance, events like World Artificial Intelligence Conference 2022 and Consumer Goods Forum's 4th China Day were successfully held in venues within the Expo Area.

Shen Feng, deputy director of the administrative committee of the Expo Area, said: "When speaking of a nice place for concerts, music festivals and exhibitions of renowned brands, the name that comes to local residents' mind would be the Expo Area. In the future, I hope the area can attract the newest and coolest cultural elements from all over the world, thus making itself cultural lovers' first choice."

By the end of 2025, Shen said, with the completion of 13 world-class large-scale cultural and sports venues, the number of seats in the Expo Area will exceed 60,000. The area will be home to 1.6 million square meters cultural and sports facilities, including a new Waldorf Astoria property and a Kimpton hotel.

In terms of business environment, Shen said the Expo Area will leverage the advantages of the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone and initiate policies to encourage foreign-owned performance brokerage firms, entertainment venue owners, and overseas performing groups to stay in the area. The Expo Area strives to become one of the regions with the highest degree of opening-up and the fewest investment restrictions in the field of culture, Shen added.

"We will provide cultural, tourism and sports enterprises with financial support. Shanghai's first sports fund was established in the Expo Area, which is expected to mobilize resources to support relevant enterprises," Shen said.

According to local officials, in the future, the Expo Area adhering to the concept of "Better City, Better Life" will become a rich seedbed for various cultural industries, and a place where many kinds of performing arts, exhibitions, sports institutions as well as cultural activities launched by domestic and international brands gather.