Tencent unit to handle intellectual property cases on online literature

Tencent Holdings Ltd is beefing up its efforts at tapping into a boom in online literature, opening a new company in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, to deal with any intellectual property issues arising from the sale and use of its original material.

The new firm, set up by Tencent's literature unit China Reading Ltd, will manage the adaptations of popular books into mobile games, TV dramas and movies on behalf of Tencent's best online writers.

The move comes after a book, The Journey of Flower, written by Jiang Chenzhou who is better known as "fresh Guoguo" online, generated 2 billion yuan ($314 million) in commercial revenue after its adaptation into a TV drama become a phenomenal hit in China.