SCMP Plus wins top award at Digital Media Awards Worldwide
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The award in the best digital subscription/reader revenue project category came after SCMP Plus beat out three competitors at Wan-IFRA's Digital Media Awards Worldwide. Wan-IFRA is the World Association of News Publishers.
'SCMP Plus exemplifies our enduring and critical role as an innovative news organisation that prioritises subscribers' needs,' said Post CEO Catherine So, who collected the award in Krakow, Poland. 'Our innovation journey, powered by talent and technology, will only accelerate.'
The premium product is designed to provide indispensable, insightful content and in-depth analysis for global decision-makers and business leaders navigating China's complexity, So said. It was introduced in May 2024, giving the Post a full suite of subscription tiers.
Catherine So (centre), CEO of the South China Morning Post, receiving the trophy in Krakow, Poland. Photo: Wan-IFRA
'The global award from Wan-IFRA Digital Media Awards Worldwide, coinciding with the first anniversary of our premium news platform SCMP Plus, affirms our leadership in trustworthy content and profound insights that empower our subscribers,' So said.
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AllAfrica
10 hours ago
- AllAfrica
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This month, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that Chinese aerospace engineers have proposed a breakthrough upgrade for People's Liberation Army (PLA) drones, drawing lessons from the Russia-Ukraine war, where approximately 90% of Russian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were reportedly neutralized by advanced air defenses. Published in the July issue of Acta Armamentarii, the research—led by Bi Wenhao of Northwestern Polytechnical University—introduces a 'terminal evasion' system that equips small to medium-sized drones with compact, side-mounted rocket boosters. These boosters enable drones to execute abrupt, high-G maneuvers in the final seconds before missile impact, disrupting tracking algorithms and causing incoming warheads to detonate in empty space. Digital simulations cited in the study show survivability rates exceeding 87%, with evasive shifts occurring within a one-to-two-second window and lateral thrust reportedly surpassing 16Gs—far beyond conventional aerodynamic limits. While the concept demonstrates significant promise in controlled environments, real-world implementation poses notable challenges. Synchronizing booster activation with flight controls demands precise thrust vectoring, and the integration of additional components introduces trade-offs in payload, fuel capacity, and overall flight stability. The system's performance against faster or more adaptive interceptors remains untested, and operational deployment would require robust surveillance networks and onboard computing capable of autonomous, split-second decision-making. Still, analysts say the innovation could shift the logic of swarm warfare. Upgrading individual drones from cheap throwaways into survivable strike platforms could allow the PLA to turn vulnerable swarms into formations capable of saturating sophisticated air defenses. The proposal underscores China's growing emphasis on survivability and agility in unmanned systems as battlefield threats evolve. Tye Graham and Peter Singer note in a May 2025 Defense One article that PLA drone countermeasures in exercises already achieved a 40% kill rate, leaving a modest 60% survival rate for drones. The 'terminal evasion' concept aims to increase that rate by 27%, reflecting Beijing's belief that raising the survivability of individual drones enhances a swarm's ability to overwhelm enemy sensors and interceptors. The logic is backed by battlefield precedent. Jorge Rivero writes in a March 2025 article for the Modern Warfare Institute (MWI) that drone strikes account for 70% of Russian casualties and, in some areas of the front, 90% of Russian equipment losses in engagements with Ukrainian forces. Such figures confirm the tactical potency of drones even with high attrition rates, suggesting that improving their survivability could be a force multiplier. Yet China's military drone program faces structural weaknesses that may limit the impact of these innovations. John S Van Oudenaren points out in a May 2025 China Aeronautical Studies Institute (CASI) report that the PLA heavily relies on civilian drone manufacturers like DJI, which lack the military-grade standards and secure supply chains needed for wartime resilience. He further highlights fragmentation among suppliers, poor coordination between commercial and defense sectors, and limited operational testing as persistent barriers to effective integration. According to Oudenaren, China's drone industry also struggles with vulnerabilities to electronic warfare, insecure communications, and underdeveloped autonomy. Without centralized oversight or dedicated defense infrastructure, he says, these issues constrain the PLA's ability to militarize its commercial drone base fully. While Beijing's push for swarm resilience marks a doctrinal shift, these underlying gaps could blunt its operational effectiveness. By contrast, the US approach to drone warfare has historically prioritized quality over quantity. SCMP noted in December 2024 that the US integrates high-end drones like the Predator and autonomous wingmen into its network-centric strategy, emphasizing sensor fusion and interoperability. SCMP says that China, by contrast, leans on mass production and AI-enabled autonomy to achieve asymmetric saturation. Both sides now see drone survivability and scale not as technical details, but as the future of power projection. 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Citing Ukraine as proof of drones' transformative lethality, the memo rescinds procurement restrictions and delegates acquisition authority directly to warfighters to accelerate deployment. Backed by US Executive Order 14307, the plan emphasizes domestic manufacturing, streamlined acquisition, and combat-realistic training, including force-on-force drone simulations. The DoD will approve hundreds of US-made systems for frontline units, integrate emergent technologies, and break through bureaucratic inertia. Hegseth warns that outdated policies must not constrain lethality amid rapid technological change. Despite these initiatives, the US still lags behind China in drone production scale, speed, and affordability. The New York Times reported in July 2025 that China's military drone base, built on civilian mass production, vastly outpaces US capabilities. 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While they say it's feasible to build domestic motor lines and repurpose car camera supply chains, critical bottlenecks remain in battery and circuit board capacity. By contrast, Feldman and Keselman note that Chinese civilian factories can retool within a year to produce one billion weaponized drones annually, using under 1% of their existing assembly capacity and without significantly straining battery or circuit board output. They warn that without major shifts in US industrial policy and long-term procurement contracts, America risks strategic vulnerability in a drone war driven not just by AI and autonomy, but by sheer output. Without bold industrial reforms and sustained procurement, the US risks losing not just the drone war but the ability to fight it at scale.
AllAfrica
7 days ago
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China's AI leap elevating stealth fighter ambitions
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In addition to relying on US AI chips, China depends on US Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software for chip development. Reuters reported that the US has lifted export controls on EDA software, coinciding with China's relaxation of rare-earth export restrictions. Despite efforts toward indigenous advanced AI chip production—particularly Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines—the Hunan Printed Circuit Association noted this month that China remains at an early developmental stage, encountering significant issues with throughput, durability, and integration into existing ecosystems. These chip-related limitations may have sharp implications for the development of strategic Chinese platforms, notably the H-20 stealth bomber. According to the 2024 US Department of Defense (DoD) China Military Power Report (CMPR), the H-20 is a critical next-generation long-range bomber designed to bolster China's nuclear triad and extend military reach beyond the Second Island Chain. 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Barnes and Peters argued that establishing a second production line is essential to scale capacity, reduce risk, and potentially support future sales to close allies, as was done with the F-35. AI-driven breakthroughs are clearly reshaping stealth aircraft development, but progress for both China and the US hinges critically on overcoming chip dependencies and scaling production capacities. The outcome of this high-stakes technological competition will shape the future balance of strategic airpower.
South China Morning Post
7 days ago
- South China Morning Post
No US stopover for Taiwanese leader could ease path to Xi-Trump meeting this year
Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te has no immediate plans for overseas travel, his office said on Monday, following reports that his proposed stopover in the United States was declined by the Donald Trump administration. Citing people familiar with the decision, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday that Washington told Lai he could not stop in New York on the way to South America, where he was earlier reported to be planning to visit Paraguay, Guatemala and Belize. The decision is expected to remove significant obstacles to a potential leaders' meeting between Beijing and Washington. Taiwanese Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo attributed the decision not to travel to the ongoing rehabilitation efforts in southern Taiwan following a recent typhoon, regional developments, and the United States' tariffs. The South China Morning Post reported earlier this month that Lai was planning a US 'stopover' in August that could take him to New York and Texas en route to South America, a move that was bound to anger Beijing. The reported cancellation of Lai's planned US transit represents another significant setback for his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), following its failure on the weekend to unseat 24 lawmakers from the main opposition Kuomintang in recall votes. The Post has approached the US State Department for comment.
