More than one million pirated DVDs and six illegal production lines were confiscated in a national piracy campaign launched early this year, sources with the office of the national working group for fighting pornographic and illegal publications said on Friday.

"Combatting pornographic and illegal publications is crucial for protecting intellectual property and cultivating a sound environment for cultural industry," said a senior official with the office, adding that the Chinese government has taken great efforts in launching the campaign.

From Dec. 2005 to Jan. 10, 2006, south China's Guangdong Province, where illegal publications are rife, destroyed three illegal production spots and six production lines on pirated DVDs. Also, in south China's Guangxi Province, more than 360,000 pirated DVDs hidden in a civilian house were found and confiscated, with the help of information from local residents.

The official noted that through the combined effort of 11 Chinese provinces and autonomous regions, China destroyed more than 10 million illegal and pirated publications, which effectively cleared up the publication market.

From 1994 to 2005, China has confiscated around 1.5 billion illegal publications, among which more than one billion were pirated copies and 88.23 million were pornographic DVDs. More than 40,000 illegal printing houses and 221 production lines have been closed and banned.

(Xinhua News Agency March 3, 2006)