Beijing News You Might Have Missed, May 20

 Beijing is a happening city! Don't miss a thing with our weekend roundup of the latest news.

Beijing Movie Theater Industry Receives Construction Subsidies: 21 newly constructed cinemas, built between 2019 and 2020, have received a substantial amount of special subsidies totaling RMB 46,893,100, according to Beijing Daily. The Beijing Film Bureau has taken measures to support cinemas in upgrading their hardware and software, improving the movie-watching experience and service quality. The government has also subsidized 41 million yuan to 223 theaters showing domestic films that qualified for the award.

Currently, there are 295 registered cinemas in the city, with 2,134 screens, and 279,879 seats. The box office has been growing steadily, with six of the country's top ten highest-grossing theaters located in Beijing. Despite the impact of the pandemic, Beijing's cinema industry has remained one of the best in China, with an annual box office of 1.42483 billion yuan in 2022.

This year, the film market has shown signs of recovery, with good results during the Spring Festival and May Day Holiday. Plus, the Beijing Daily report continues, the industry is optimistic about the upcoming summer holiday and National Day. The subsidies and support provided by the government have encouraged the development of Beijing's cinema industry, which is expected to continue to grow and flourish in the coming years.

Beijing Book Building Opens: Yesterday marked the official opening of the second phase of the Beijing Book Building, reports Beijing Youth Daily. Situated north of the main building in Xidan and spanning an impressive 2900 square meters on the ground floor alone, the building's exhibition area offers visitors a unique opportunity to explore the building's interior and engage with a diverse range of reading materials.

This brand-new reading cultural space is designed to integrate reading, experience, exhibitions, and leisure. The overall design is focused on a simple and atmospheric industrial style, transparent and natural, with a clear vision. This improvement provides citizens with a unique visual and reading experience.

The Beijing Book Building 北京图书大厦
17 Chang'an Xijie, Xicheng District
西城区西长安街17号
Hours: Daily, 10am-9pm
Phone: 010-66078477

Beijing Subway Unveils Palm Scanning Entry Method:  Beijing Subway and WeChat Pay have introduced a new palm print recognition system on the Daxing Airport Express, allowing passengers to take the subway train by scanning the palms of their hands, according to a report from China Daily. The system is available at ticket machines and gates at all stops along the line. 

While the mini-program is not currently available in English, passengers can still easily link it to WeChat Pay. The process involves visiting a smart ticket booth located at a Beijing Subway station on the Daxing Line and using the Beijing Subway's 'palm swipe' mini-program within WeChat, which allows for seamless access to the station. To use it, passengers scan and upload their palm print at the ticket machine and link it to their phone number and ID via a WeChat mini program. 

While the service provider collects, processes, and stores clients' palm print and palm veins information, they delete the original sample and picture of the users' palms after extracting the required information, as per relevant laws, making it a secure, convenient, and hassle-free way to access the subway system that is likely to become more widespread in the future.

Read: Events and Happenings in the ‘Jing This Weekend (May 19-21) 

Images: Unsplash