Many world-famous magazines, such as "Newsweek", "Elle" and "Marie Claire" now appear on newsstands on Chinese streets -- in Chinese.

The Chinese versions of these magazines are the result of copyright cooperation between foreign publishers and local market players.

Chinese publishers have established copyright cooperation with 54 foreign magazines and will continue to push for such ties, the head of China's press watchdog said in Beijing on Monday at the ongoing 36th World Magazine Congress (WMC).

Among the 54 co-published magazines, 28 are about science and technology, one about business, and the other 25 fall into the category of fashion and life, said Liu Binjie, head of the General Administration of Press and Publications.

The foreign publishers in cooperation deals include some of the big names such as France's Hachette Filippacchi Media, U.S. publishers IDG Group and Hearst Corporation, and McGraw-Hill, he said.

"Cooperation is of great benefit to the domestic publishing industry," said a market analyst. "The influx of world-famous magazines not only adds variety to the domestic periodical market, but also brings in timely first-hand information and rich advertising resources."

"The Chinese government values cooperation in the publishing industry and will create more opportunities for foreign magazines to flourish on Chinese soil," Liu said.

China will further open the domestic market and welcome foreign competition, Liu said.

But participants attending the ongoing 36th WMC felt China was too timid about opening its publishing market.

"The Chinese magazine market is not entirely open for foreign investors. We are not able to own the magazine title like we do in other countries," Thomas Mehls, CEO of Germany's Motor-Press International, told Xinhua at the congress.

In China, foreign publishers are still forbidden from operating publications on their own. They are obliged to cooperate with Chinese counterparts.

"We all want China to open up more, but 20 years of experience tells us that it is a step-by-step process, so we just have to be patient," said P. Victor Visor, CEO of Hachette Filippacchi's Great China, Southeast Asia & Australia division.

Editor: Wing