Notice of the General Office of Shanghai Municipal People's Government on Issuing the Measures of Shanghai Municipality for Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Software and Information Services Industry

SMPG D [2025] No. 4

Attention: All District People's Government, and all Commissions, Offices and Bureaus (Administrations) of the Municipal People's Government:

Measures of Shanghai Municipality for Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Software and Information Services Industry have been approved by the Municipal People's Government. We hereby issue them to you, and request you to implement them conscientiously.

General Office of Shanghai Municipal People's Government

June 27, 2025

Measures of Shanghai Municipality for Promoting the High-Quality Development

of the Software and Information Services Industry

These Measures are formulated to fully implement China's national strategy for software development, give full play to the role of the information services industry as a key driver of stable economic growth of Shanghai Municipality, and promote the high-quality development of the Municipality's software and information services industry (hereinafter referred to as the "SIS industry").

I. Energizing the Growth Dynamics of Business Entities in the SIS Industry

1. Providing Incentives to Cultivate High-Quality Enterprises

District people's governments are encouraged to provide incentives to SIS enterprises within their jurisdictions that achieve total annual revenue exceeding 2 billion yuan and growth rate 1.2 times the municipal average. (Responsible Authority: all district people's governments)

2. Providing Incentives to Foster and Strengthen Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

Cumulative rewards of up to 5 million yuan, 10 million yuan, 20 million yuan, and 30 million yuan shall be granted respectively to the core teams of SIS enterprises that achieve annual operating revenue exceeding 1 billion yuan, 5 billion yuan, 10 billion yuan, and 20 billion yuan for the first time. Cumulative rewards of 5 million yuan, 10 million yuan, 20 million yuan, and 30 million yuan shall be granted respectively to the core teams of basic software, industrial software, and information security software enterprises that achieve annual operating revenue exceeding 250 million yuan, 500 million yuan, 1 billion yuan, and 1.5 billion yuan for the first time. (Responsible Authority: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

3. Incentivizing the Growth of Micro and Small Enterprises

One-time rewards of up to 200,000 yuan and 300,000 yuan shall be granted respectively to SIS enterprises that achieve annual revenue exceeding 20 million yuan for the first time, if their revenue growth in the first three quarters of the year is higher than the municipal average and by no more than 20 percent. For enterprises that achieve annual revenue exceeding 20 million yuan for the first time but whose year-on-year comparable data is not yet available, rewards shall be determined based on their revenue for the first three quarters. Specifically, one-time rewards of 400,000 yuan and 500,000 yuan shall be granted respectively to enterprises with revenue between 20 million yuan and 100 million yuan, and those exceeding 100 million yuan. (Responsible Authority: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

II. Supporting Artificial Intelligence (AI) Driven Quality Enhancement of the SIS Industry

4. Supporting Cloud Service Providers in Developing Model-as-a-Service (MaaS) Capabilities

Cloud service providers shall be supported to construct MaaS platforms. Innovation entities utilizing these services will receive a certain percentage of computing power subsidies in accordance with applicable provisions, aiming to reduce the costs associated with deploying and utilizing the models for various users. (Responsible Authority: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

5. Supporting the Development of Industry-Specific Models

SIS enterprises and large AI model providers are encouraged to partner with enterprises in sectors such as the online new economy, finance, education, healthcare, culture and tourism, and manufacturing to jointly develop and apply industry-specific models. Eligible projects are entitled to receive investment subsidies covering up to 30 percent of their total investment. (Responsible Authority: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

6. Supporting the Development of General-Purpose Intelligent Agents

Support shall be provided to SIS enterprises for the development of cross-domain, multi-tasking, and self-planning general-purpose intelligent agents. Agents that have been launched and reached a specified user scale shall be included in Shanghai's computing power and model voucher schemes. Additionally, government-sponsored industrial investment funds shall be utilized to empower the growth of high-value projects. (Responsible Authority: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

7. Accelerating Intelligent Upgrading and Digital Transformation

Support shall be provided to SIS enterprises to achieve software R&D efficiency through methods including model-driven programming and data governance. Basic software, industrial software, application software, and security software are encouraged to accelerate intelligent and technological upgrading. Eligible projects are entitled to receive investment subsidies covering up to 50 percent of their total investment. (Responsible Authority: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

III. Strengthening Policy Support for Cultivating New Growth Drivers of the SIS Industry

8. Stimulating Market Demand for Domestically Developed Software

The "Industry-Driven Software" Innovation Initiative shall be implemented, with the release of the catalogue of software applications. Eligible software application projects are entitled to software application subsidies covering up to 80 percent of the procurement contract amount, which may be provided to the purchasers of such applications. Enterprises in Shanghai are encouraged to utilize domestically developed and secure software. Software enterprises shall be supported in applying for national-level projects aligned with major strategic initiatives and key security capacities.

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, and the Municipal State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission)

9. Advancing Clustered Development of Digital Content Industries in Shanghai

Qualified districts shall be supported in establishing clusters of digital content industries. Efforts shall be made to promote the production, servicing, and distribution of digital content across such fields as digital games, digital film and television, digital music, livestreaming, short-form dramas, and short videos. A tiered service model shall be developed to support incubation, registration, trading, and financing for such industries. Pilot programs shall be launched, when appropriate, to allow games developed in Shanghai by foreign-invested enterprises to be treated the same way as the domestically produced games for policy purposes. Support shall also be provided for pilot initiatives involving copyright pledge financing for eligible digital content projects.

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Press and Publication Administration, Office of the Financial Affairs Commission of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Shanghai Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau, and all relevant district people's governments)

10. Enriching Application Scenarios for New Digital Technologies

Forward-looking R&D shall be supported in key technology fields including digital humans, digital twins, virtual reality, perceptual interaction, and spatial computing. Accelerated efforts shall be made to foster future network ecosystems, including advanced 5th-Generation Mobile Communication Technology (5G-Advanced), 6th-Generation Wireless Systems (6G), Satellite Internet, and 7th-Generation Wireless Local Area Network Technology (Wi-Fi 7). The application and integration of next-generation digital technologies, such as human-computer interaction and human-computer symbiosis, shall be promoted across manufacturing, healthcare, culture and tourism, education, commerce, and entertainment. A batch of original digital products and solutions shall be cultivated. (Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, the Municipal Commission of Education, and the Municipal Commission of Commerce)

11. Stimulating Internal Development Momentum in Data-Elements Industries

Administrative measures for the authorized operation of public data shall be introduced to accelerate the development of data application scenarios in sectors such as healthcare, education, finance, and scientific research. Financial institutions shall be encouraged to pilot loan programs secured by data assets. Demonstration projects under the new infrastructure initiative shall be organized and implemented, including but not limited to blockchain technology applications and healthcare data empowerment pilots. Efforts shall be made to explore the establishment of corpus-focused venture capital funds, pilot new investment models such as equity contributions with corpora valuation as assets, and explore benefit-sharing mechanisms for corpus development and sharing. Efforts shall be made to support the construction of trusted data spaces, with a focus on such fields as industrial manufacturing and the online new economy.

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, Office of the Financial Affairs Commission of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, the Municipal Commission of Health, and the Municipal Data Bureau)

IV. Reducing Costs and Burden of SIS Enterprises

12. Reducing R&D Costs of SIS Enterprises

Existing preferential tax policies, such as weighted pre-tax deductions for R&D expenses, shall be fully implemented. Municipal funds designated for the Industrial High-Quality Development and the Strategic Emerging Industries shall provide continued and adaptive support for key R&D projects, with the maximum support rate per project set at 30 percent, while municipal major science and technology dedicated funds shall support the R&D of eligible critical strategic products, with the maximum support rate per project set at 50 percent. (Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, and the Municipal Bureau of Finance)

13. Reducing Financing Costs of SIS Enterprises

The municipal policy-based financing guarantee fund for micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) shall be utilized to provide financing guarantee services to eligible MSMEs in the SIS industry, with a guarantee cap of 30 million yuan per enterprise. Financial institutions are encouraged to offer "seamless renewal" and "principal-free renewal" loan services to MSMEs in the SIS industry. Authoritative third-party intermediary service systems, such as software product valuation, enterprise value assessment, and technology risk evaluation, shall be strengthened to offer more comprehensive information support for market-driven fund investments in the SIS industry. Support shall be provided to eligible enterprises to carry out mergers and acquisitions, aiming to bolster weak links in the industrial and supply chains in the software sector, through coordinated investment and subsidy mechanisms. Support shall also be provided to Intelligent Computing Center projects in issuing Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Bureau of Finance, Office of the Financial Affairs Commission of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, and Shanghai Head Office of the People's Bank of China)

14. Reducing Network Access Fees of SIS Enterprises

Telecom operators shall be guided to comprehensively utilize measures on service package capacity expansion and upgrades to further reduce the average service fees for broadband and dedicated lines by more than 5 percent from the current levels.

Telecom operators shall be guided to take the lead in the Lin-gang Special Area by piloting new business models such as group purchasing for cross-border dedicated lines, further reducing cross-border dedicated line fees. Standards shall be established for network access services in commercial office buildings and industrial parks to ensure that basic telecom operators deliver direct network services to enterprise users.

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, and the Municipal Communications Administration)

15. Reducing Labor Costs of SIS Enterprises

One-time employment absorption subsidies and one-time subsidies for creating new positions, as well as other policy incentives shall be fully implemented. SIS Enterprises shall be supported in recruiting high-end talent, and high-growth enterprises shall be included in the municipal pilot program for the Master of Engineering. SIS Enterprises with strong R&D capabilities and an urgent need for high-level talent shall be supported in establishing postdoctoral research workstations.

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Talent Work Bureau, the Municipal Bureau of Human Resources and Social Security, the Municipal Bureau of Education, and the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

16. Optimizing Effective Talent Supply for the SIS Industry

Support shall be provided to qualified universities to pilot new models for the independent cultivation of top-notch talent in the information field, and to carry out systematic reforms in areas such as interdisciplinary program design, integrated training, and collaborative cultivation involving multi-stakeholders.

High-quality SIS enterprises shall be organized to connect with university graduates from relevant majors, and qualified enterprises shall be supported in jointly developing training courses with universities and in establishing employment and internship bases for graduates.

A regularly updated list of urgently needed academic disciplines and majors shall be published. Independently developed software shall be incorporated into the teaching materials, and founders of enterprises shall be invited to give lectures in universities. A global recruitment program for first-class information technology talent shall be implemented, with increased support provided in accordance with applicable provisions.

(Responsible Authorities: the Municipal Bureau of Education, the Municipal Talent Work Bureau, and the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

17. Improving Regulatory Services for SIS Enterprises

A sound coordination mechanism for handling criminal cases among public security organs shall be strengthened, with a dedicated office established to centrally receive and review cross-jurisdictional cooperation and assistance requests. Extensive policy guidance shall be provided to SIS enterprises, and efforts shall be made to promote the establishment of a liaison mechanism of "one public security officer for one enterprise".

Network regulatory and supervisory services shall be incorporated into enterprise service packages to crack down on and handle enterprise-related infringing content and accounts. A series of "Clear and Bright" campaigns shall be launched to improve the online environment, accompanied by extensive publicity for industrial parks and enterprises regarding the reporting and handling of complaints related to enterprise information.

(Responsible Authorities: Office of the Cyberspace Affairs Commission of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, the Municipal Communications Administration, the Municipal Bureau of Public Security, and the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

These Measures shall be effective as of July 1, 2025, and remain in force through June 30, 2028.