A Star Wars exhibition at Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Dassow in Germany on September 7, 2019. (Photo/Dfic) 

Oct. 18 (NBD) – China Literature Ltd (0772.HK), online publishing arm of tech titan Tencent, announced a partnership with The Walt Disney Company (Disney) to create a brand-new Chinese-language Star Wars novel.

The story will be produced jointly by a highly popular author on China Literature's platforms and the story group of Lucasfilm, a division of Disney. This is the first time that Disney licenses digital copyright for the classic sci-fi series in China. In addition to the new novel, 40 Star Wars e-books translated into Chinese will soon be available on the digital reading platform of China Literature. 

Since 1977 when the first of the series was launched, Star Wars has remained one of the worldwide famous intellectual properties (IP). The sci-fi series has been expanded into other media, including television series, video games, novels, comic books, theme park attractions and themed areas, building an all-encompassing fictional universe.

Talking about Disney's collaboration with China Literature, James Waugh, vice president at Franchise Content & Strategy at Lucasfilm, noted Star Wars is exploring new ways to interact deeply with the Chinese audience. From the Star Wars Run and the marketing campaign on the Great Wall for Star Wars: The Force Awakens to the Star Wars live orchestra performances, Lucasfilm is showing its sincerity in wooing Chinese consumers.

When asked whether Star Wars as a foreign IP can be well accepted in China after the adaptation, Waugh held the stories and themes of Star Wars are universally applied, adding that the stories are always enchanting no matter what kinds of platforms they appear on and what forms they are presented in.

"The charm of the Star Wars series lies in infinite courage and uprightness it passes to the readers, and the power that inspires people, more than just cool lightsabers and the Jedi," explained Yang Chen, general manager for content operation with China Literature.

National Business Daily noticed that besides Star Wars, a number of overseas IPs have been brought to the Chinese market.

For instance, Japanese manga series Midnight Diner was adapted into a Chinese-version TV series as well as a Chinese movie, which was directed by famous Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Ka-fai. French pre-school award-winning series "The Treehouse Stories" was also made available in Chinese by video platform Youku. 

How to better localize overseas IP remains the key issue for IP operators. The first of all is to choose IPs with attractive world view and values, according to Zeng Gang, executive vice president of livestreaming platform PP Sports.

Meanwhile, the value of the IPs should be adapted to cater to the local market. "Only when the adapted IPs resonate with the audience in terms of values, can the work gain popularity," emphasized Zeng.

Email: lansuying@nbd.com.cn