Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (TCFHE) has appointed Alvin Fu as managing director of its China operations, effective immediately.

Fu will be based in Guangzhou, in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, alongside Zoke Culture Group which is TCFHE's exclusive distribution partner in mainland China.

'The appointment of Alvin marks the next step in our ongoing commitment to China 's dynamic home entertainment market and furthering Twentieth Century Fox's global business strategy,' said TCFHE International executive vice president Keith Feldman.

Twentieth Century Fox International also has a Beijing-based China Business Director, Luke Xiang, who oversees theatrical releases in the territory.

Before joining Fox, Fu was managing director of Heinz-Meiweiyuan (Guangzhou) Food Co and for six years until 2006 was national sales director of Heinz-Ufe. He has also held positions with Gillette and GPI International.

Under a deal that Fox struck with Zoke in November, the Guangzhou-based company will distribute recent theatrical releases as well as titles from the studio's film library in around 20,000 retail outlets in major cities across China.

Warner Home Video (WHV) and Universal Pictures International (UPI) also distribute their titles on video in China through CAV Warner Home Entertainment - a joint venture between WHV and Shanghai-based China Audio Video.

Both Fox/Zoke and CAV Warner price new releases at a competitive level in an attempt to combat China 's vast piracy market. In addition, the average DVD release window in China is much shorter than that in North America.

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