China's most popular periodical, Reader, will publish in the United States and Canada next year, according to a contract signed by its publisher and a US-based company on Tuesday.

Reader is a digest periodical in China with articles, previously published or not, contributed by readers from all walks of life. First published in 1981, the magazine was ranked Top Ten in circulation among Chinese magazines for 13 consecutive years and has the highest circulation in the country today.

Until April 2003, it has circulated 7.65 million copies and was ranked fourth among magazines worldwide. It is well known throughout China for its high quality and heartwarming humanistic style.

Reader was originally named Reader's Digest, which resulted in a copyright dispute with the American magazine Reader's Digest. In 1993, the Chinese Reader's Digest decided to give up its original name and change it to Reader, ending the year-long legal dispute.

Publisher Gansu Renmin Press signed a US$4.5-million contract with Big Way Media Inc. in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province.

According to the contract, from 2004 to 2008, the company is entitled to publish 5,000 simplified Chinese versions of Reader each issue at the price of US$2.5 per book. In five years, circulation will reach 25,000 per issue.

"It is the first time a Chinese periodical has sold in north America since China's entry to the World Trade Organization," said Zhang Bohai, president of China Periodicals Association.

Reader has a large group of overseas Chinese readers. This progress will further boost the spread of Chinese culture worldwide, said Michael Yang, president of the company.

The English version is expected to enter the north American market later, according to Zhang.

(Xinhua News Agency August 27, 2003)