BEIJING - China plans to merge about 1,000 regional radio and television networks into a single national cable television network company to increase competitiveness.

The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television said the new company would be formed by year's end and would expand into mobile TV and online videos, the China Daily newspaper reported.

An official said the networks need to be consolidated "as they are individually run and have not developed into large-scale entities".

All networks in the nation are likely to be integrated in three years. The new company would have a start-up investment of 80 billion yuan ($16 billion), with contributions from the government and broadcasters.

The report made no mention of state broadcaster China Central Television and whether it would be part of the plan.

-AFP