Following its recent contract termination with Beijing Zhenlong Advertising, Chinese Internet search engine Baidu.com (BIDU) has now ended its cooperation with another key agent in Beijing, Jinghe Xinda.
With the termination of cooperation with the two, Baidu now exclusively handles its own sales in the Beijing region.
Beijing Zhenlong Advertising and Jinghe Xinda were two core agents of Baidu in Beijing who previously were authorized to develop second-tier agents.
A second-tier agent with Jinghe Xinda has told local media that as the cooperation has ended before the contract expired, Baidu will pay an undisclosed sum for Jinhe Xinda to shift its business.
Baidu has been shifting from its agent system to direct sales in key markets in China. One way it has done this is through direct acquisition of smaller advertising sales businesses, and the other is to provide compensation to existing agents in order for Baidu to prematurely end contracts.