Hangzhou Asian Games International Broadcast Centre (IBC) began operation in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, on Friday with the launching ceremony of the Asian Games Art Production Season.

Shen Haixiong, vice minister of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and president of China Media Group (CMG); CMG editorial board member Huang Chuanfang; and Yao Gaoyuan, vice president and secretary-general of the Hangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee and mayor of Hangzhou, attended the ceremony.

China Media Group editorial board member Huang Chuanfang addresses the operation ceremony of the Hangzhou Asian Games IBC which begins operation in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, September 1, 2023. /CMG

Huang said that both sports and art are common languages for human beings. CMG has been doing an excellent job of combining the beauty of arts and the excitement of sports in a series of programs and so will provide global-leading services to authorized media outlets in Asia, as well as premium broadcasting services to audiences all over the world during the Asian Games.

An eight-episode program titled "Meet Zhejiang" was presented at the ceremony to tell marvelous stories about the Asian Games via audiovisual art. According to Huang, it will also build better images of local cities, deepen civilizational exchange, promote Chinese culture to the world, and advance the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Yao Gaoyuan, vice president and secretary-general of the Hangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee and mayor of Hangzhou, addresses the operation ceremony of the Hangzhou Asian Games IBC, September 1, 2023. /CMG

Yao pointed out that both the Hangzhou Asian Games and the Asian Para Games are major political responsibilities for Hangzhou and Zhejiang, as well as an important foreign affairs event for China in 2023. He hoped that CMG will, via its broadcasting of the Asian Games, help display the unique attractions of Hangzhou as a city.

The IBC is located at the Hangzhou International Expo Center and operated by CMG to assemble, produce and distribute the television and radio signals for the Hangzhou Asian Games and Asian Para Games. A total of 3,500 signal hours will be distributed and transmitted on 83 streams to 21 authorized international broadcasters.

The IBC will operate 24 hours a day from September 9 until the closing of the Games.