Spider, a Shanghai-based Website, yesterday received a venture capital investment of ''several million dollars'', the first time VC funds have been pumped into the Chinese publishing industry.

Shanghai Helpsun Investment Co, founded by several Zhejiang Province investors, was the investor and Spider is negotiating to attract further investment, said Huang Xianbo, Spider's chairman.

The investment will help Spider to expand networks in 10 cities nationwide, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Nanjing and Changsha.

The local firm allows users to subscribe to domestic and overseas newspapers and magazines, including Shanghai Daily and Xinmin Evening News, through Website spider.com.cn. It charges publishers based on the subscription volumes through its Website.

Compared with the traditional channel such as subscriptions via the post office, Spider provides clients convenient and customized services, favorable prices and wider choices, according to Yang Bo, Spider's vice general manager.

"It's hard for rivals to copy the Spider's model as it has the license to publish newspapers and magazines online and it has over 10,000 choices for users, much more than what the post office offers," said Gao Feng, Helpsun's director.

Spider generates a revenue of 300 million yuan to 500 million yuan (US$42.9 million to US$71.4 million) annually and it expects that to expand five to 10 times in 2008, Yang added.

China's online shopping volume totaled 18.8 billion yuan in the first quarter, a whopping 170 percent growth year on year, according to iResearch, a Shanghai-based Internet consulting firm.

Expectations are increasing that the rising netizen population in China and people's rising income and consumption trends will boost payments online.

(Shanghai Daily May 20, 2008)