Chinese and international publishers have met in Beijing in the lead up to the Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF) 2010 that opened Monday, exchanging views on the globalization of the publishing industry.

The meeting, Globalization of Publishing: Mutual Choices of China and the World, was conducted by Nie Zhenning, president of China Publishing Group Corporation and Ronald G. Dunn, president and CEO of Cengage Learning, a publishing company with branches and organizations in 23 countries and regions.

Ronald G. Dunn speaking at the Beijing forum. [Global Times]

For Chinese publishers to go global, Nie said they must tell Chinese stories to the world, increase international sales and improve copyright.

"To the publishing industry, content is always the core value and content innovation is the unchanging principle of the industry," he said, adding that for Chinese publishers to go abroad is for Chinese culture to go abroad.

The publishing of the foreign language versions of Confucius from the Heart: Ancient Wisdom for Today's World by Chinese scholar Yu Dan, set a good example, he said. According to Nie, foreign copyright of the book has been licensed in 33 languages and more than 70,000 French-language copies have been sold.

"There are far more abundant and marvelous stories regarding China's ancient civilization and development in the contemporary era. Chinese writers and publishers should be confident in telling such stories," he added.

Nie also pointed out that market research prior to publishing is essential, taking Western readers' perspectives into consideration.

"Some books that could be easily understood by Chinese readers can become really difficult for Western readers to understand…Chinese writers often write with only Chinese readers' understanding in mind. The works are based on the premise that readers known about the topic. When such works are being sold on international markets, the authors should consider people who don't know China well."

Dunn agreed, adding that many bilingual readers are not necessarily bicultural, emphasizing the importance of keeping works in context.