Jane Chen / Shanghai Daily news

China's electronic giant TCL Corporation and US entertainment conglomerate The Walt Disney Co announced yesterday a joint program to tap China's cartoon-image electronics market, which as yet remains unfilled, www.sina.com reported.
TCL attributed the huge potential of the market to this Sino-US cooperation.
"The domestic market for cartoon-image electronic products are in a fledgling state," TCL group's chief executive officer Yuan Xincheng said.  Estimating that "the potential demand accounts for 2 percent of the total consumer electronics market", he expected the market for 2006 would be valued at up to 12 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion).
The first group of products from the partnership will be television sets, DVD players, phones, CD players, clocks and radios in the image of classic Disney cartoon characters including Mickey Mouse, Snowwhite and Winnie the Pooh.  They will be marketed in 13 major cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Chongqing, the Sina report said.
Market analysts and industry insiders seem optimistic about this TCL-Disney tie-up.
"It provides a new idea to tap China's surging electronics market," said Professor Hu Zuohao of Tsinghua University's management school.
Sharing this view, vice secretary-general Wang Ning with the China Electronics Trade Association said "cartoon-image products, with higher added value, will improve manufacturers' profitability."