Taiwanese publishing houses specializing in cartoons and graphic novels are looking forward to exploring the mainland market while their mainland counterparts are also marketing their own publications on the island.

"We are actively exploring the mainland market and hoping to introduce more Taiwan graphic novel artists to the mainland," said Michael Huang, chairman of the council of the "Chinese Animation and Comic Publishers Association" based in Taiwan, in an interview with Xinhua on Friday.

Publishing houses on both sides have worked together to publish some graphic novels in past years, but now Taiwan' s publishing houses are trying to establish closer cooperation, including setting up joint ventures, said Huang, who is also chief executive officer of the Sharp Point Publishing Group, one of the leading publishers of graphic novels.

Sharp Point is planning to set up an office in Hangzhou of eastern Zhejiang Province, though they are still looking for partners, he said.

"Through joint ventures, the two sides can better arrange their resources and make the best of their advantages," he said.

Taiwan publishers are more experienced in marketing and management, while the mainland has strong government support for the industry, he said. "In addition, we also hope to discover more talented artists, no matter on the mainland or in Taiwan."

Xia Da, a mainland graphic novel artist, signed a contract on Thursday with Sharp Point to publish two of her works in Taiwan.

Taiwan's annual Comic Exhibition will be held from July 28 to Aug. 2 in Taipei, attracting 60 publishers displaying their products in 350 booths.

"It is a pity that we did not manage to invite mainland publishers to this year's fair. But we hope to invite some mainland artists and publishers next year. This will be a top priority for next year's fair," Huang said.

Since the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), signed by the two sides in June, removed the quota restriction on Taiwan-produced films, many Taiwan animation companies decided to seize the opportunity to distribute on the mainland.

Morris Wang, a Taiwan animation artist who worked in Hollywood for many years, returned to Taiwan recently to restart his career.

"As the quota restriction is removed, Taiwan's animation films have a very good chance to enter the mainland market, compared with films from other regions," he said.

Mainland animation and cartoon companies also showed great interest in Taiwan's market. Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf, a popular animation film on the mainland, made its debut in Taiwan on Friday. Its producer, Creative Power Entertaining based in southern Guangdong Province, also launched a theme park in Taipei jointly with Taiwan's leading media group, China Times Group.

A delegation from Hangzhou began a visit to the island on Thursday to attract Taiwanese animation producers and cartoon publishers.

"We hope to invite more Taiwan companies and artists to attend the animation fair in Hangzhou," said Wang Xiaomei, deputy head of Hangzhou's publicity office. "Through joint efforts from the mainland and Taiwan, we can promote Chinese artists on the world stage."