China.com Corp said it has opened the Japan office of its "Web Connection" wholly owned subsidiary, bringing to 10 the number of Asia-Pacific markets covered by China.com, South China Morning Post reported on December 6.

Web Connection was formed in early 1999, officials said, and currently has several projects under way, including e-business "solutions" strategy work for sports shoe brand New Balance Japan, The Oxford University Press, and international children's book publisher, Shikosha.

The Web Connection launch follows on the heels of the office launch of China.com Corp's on-line advertising subsidiary 24/7 Media Asia last November.

Late last month, it bought majority shareholdings in: iConcept.net, a Hong Kong-based business-to-business Internet content developer targeting small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); Information @ge, a Hong Kong-based news provider; and Malaysian Internet advertising firm e-Asia.

China.com also formed a business-to-business joint venture with Jay Tian, a professor at the China Academy of Science in Beijing, to be called Beijing Digital Ark.

China.com has also seen its share price rise in recent weeks, as hopes for foreign investments in mainland Internet companies were bolstered with the establishment of a trade agreement between the mainland and the US.