China Central Television and China Merchants Bank launched a scheme to fund fast-growing private firms in Zhejiang Province yesterday to help them advertise on the nation's most far-reaching medium.
Both parties will look at companies, industries or areas that have growth potential and offer preferential policies to support the growth of the selected firms.
CCTV will choose one to three firms in one industry that have a strong  management team and promising growth prospects so that they can easily get loans from China Merchants to fund their commercials on CCTV. It will also advise such companies on media buying.
China Merchants will extend a credit line of 15 billion yuan (US$1.81 billion) to the private firms in Zhejiang Province within three years, said Ma Weihua, president of the bank.
Chinese private firms are lacking established brand names which largely curbed their fast development, said industry officials.
The scheme will help promising firms which can't afford to advertise currently.
Guo Zhengxi, an official with the CCTV's advertisement department, said the scheme will look at firms in the electrical parts, apparel, rice wine, tyre and food industries.
CCTV is also talking to China Minsheng Banking Corp and an unidentified overseas bank on similar cooperation, Guo said.