Hangzhou, the capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, is to host the second China international animation, comic festival next year, said an official with the Hangzhou city government Thursday.

Zhang Hongjian, an official in charge of publicity, said that Hangzhou, the host city of the first animation comic festival, has overwhelmed other Chinese cities to finally again grip the host right.

The upcoming festival will be slated from the end of April to May in 2006, and encompass four plates as exhibition, forum, competition and other related activities, all of which will total 20 items of activities, he said.

The first festival was held from June 1 to 5 this year in Hangzhou, and drew more than 1.2 million people, including famed animation artists from both at home and overseas, and got three billion yuan (about US$375 million) of investment.

Zhang said that the second festival is expected to make a breakthrough in the protection of intellectual property right and provide a trading platform for animation and comic industry.

(Xinhua News Agency November 4, 2005)