The children of communist China could soon be enjoying the ultimate American experience: Disneyland.
The chief executive of Walt Disney, Mr Michael Eisner, has confirmed that he is looking at bringing Mickey Mouse, Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny to mainland China, which is rapidly becoming more Western than the West itself.
Disney already plans to open a $22 billion Disneyland theme park in Hong Kong in 2005. This will be the second Asian Disney location after Tokyo, Japan.
Mr Eisner said Disney was in constant talks with authorities in Beijing and Shanghai about a second theme park which he said would be feasible because of the size of the Chinese market, with more than 1.2 billion people.
Mr Eisner was speaking in Hong Kong, where he arrived after visiting Beijing and several theme parks with top Disney executives.
"I'm sure some day there will be a possibility to build another Disney theme park on the mainland that would be geographically so distant from Hong Kong that they will not compete," he said. "There is additional market in China that could support a Disneyland not at all competitive to Hong Kong."
This week, Walt Disney launched its first Chinese-language Web site in conjunction with a Chinese partner, which will tout the company's theme parks, television programmes and movies.
As with Disney.com, the site will also feature Disney's online subscription service, Blast, which offers games and attractions for children. The site won't have links to other Disney sites, such as ESPN and ABC.
"Disney's content, including such recognisable characters as Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck, has universal appeal to children and families of all cultures," said Mr Mark Handler, of the Walt Disney Internet Group. "We're excited to be part of the Chinese Internet market."
Mr Eisner said about 90 per cent of visitors to Tokyo Disneyland were from around Tokyo, while the two US Disney theme parks catered for different markets.
However, he stressed that there was no pending announcement to made in relation to the mainland. "Our job now is to get Hong Kong's theme park working, get it built, and make it a success." He said that Hong Kong would be a "major regional hub of Disney magic" from which new products and ideas would be developed.
The company plans to launch a new mobile telephone service in Hong Kong and is considering a local Disney television channel.
The new theme park is expected to draw 1.5 million visitors in its first year, creating 18,000 jobs.