(Yicai Global) Dec. 17 -- Shanghai Motion Magic Digital Entertainment, a leading Chinese provider of digital content and services, has kicked off the process to go public.

The state-backed company hired Guotai Junan Securities on Dec. 9 for so-called pre-listing tutoring, the China Securities Regulatory Commission said on its website two days ago.

The 20-year-old firm offers computer graphics animation and special effects production, video postproduction and digital marketing services such as location-based entertainment creation. It contributed to the variety show Keep Running and the international CG animation Final Fantasy XV, and independently produced the Battle Through the Heavens cartoon, which racked up more than 5 billion views.

LBE is a quest for novel, entertaining uses of common social spaces like game arcades, water parks and like venues that brings people together in a tech-enhanced environment using virtual reality and other new technologies.

The global market for location-based virtual reality entertainment will reach USD11.8 billion in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 31 percent, according a 2019 report by US-based VR and augmented reality market data analytics firm Greenlight Insights.

Shanghai Media Group and its subsidiaries own 55.7 percent of Motion Magic and are the firm’s indirect controlling shareholder and actual controller, per the announcement. Motion Magic and Yicai Global’s parent Yicai Media Group are both part of SMG, which is owned by Shanghai’s state assets administrator.

Magic Motion secured CNY60 million (USD9.2 million) in an A-round financing in 2018 from lead investor Ants Capital and co-investor Meridian Capital. It also landed equity financing from Oriental Pearl Group in the same year.

Despite being a state-backed company, Motion Magic’s management team and businesses are extremely market-oriented, forming a unique brand competitiveness, according to He Wenyi, a partner at Ants Capital.

Magic Motion has built up great capabilities and experienced teams via its television production business and brings these strengths into full play in location-based virtual reality entertainment, animations, integrated multimedia and other innovative businesses, He said.

Editor: Ben Armour