"Guangzhou has finally won the title from a dozen applicants," said Xiao Zhenyu, head of the Guangzhou Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation Bureau.

"The entitlement speaks for the State's positive attitude toward the headway Guangzhou has made in the development of its software industry as well as its rapid growth of software exports in the past few years," he said.

"It also reflects the government's confidence in the city's future software development."

Xiao said Guangzhou will make good use of its position as a national export-oriented software innovation base.

The city's aim is to realize an annual software industrial output of 110 billion (US$13.9 billion) by 2010, an increase of 35 per cent year-on-year, and annual software exports of US$1.20 billion, up 30 per cent year-on-year.

Official statistics indicate the city's over 1,100 software enterprises realized total revenue of 24.2 billion yuan (US$3.1 billion) in 2005, with exports reaching US$336 million.

Xiao said the municipal government of Guangzhou has budgeted 150 million yuan (US$19 million) each year from this year until 2010 to support software industrial parks, train software professionals, and subsidize software exports and software outsourcing businesses.

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