UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): December 30, 2014

CHINANET ONLINE HOLDINGS, INC.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

Nevada	001-34647	20-4672080
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer Identification No.)

No. 3 Min Zhuang Road, Building 6,

Yu Quan Hui Gu Tuspark, Haidian District, Beijing, PRC 100195

(Address of Principal Executive Offices and Zip Code)

+86-10-51600828

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

N/A

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

[ ] Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

[ ] Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

[ ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

[ ] Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

On December 30, 2014, Mr. Chang Qiu was appointed to fill a vacancy created from expanding the Board of Directors of ChinaNet Online Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”) from five (5) to six (6) members. The Company has determined that Mr. Qiu qualifies as independent director as such term is defined by Rule 5605(a)(2) of the Marketplace Rules of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (the “Nasdaq Marketplace Rules”) and Section 10A(m)(3) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”).

Mr. Qiu, age 51, has served as a Principal of Sansar Capital Management since 2007. From 2001 through 2007, Mr. Qiu served as the Founder, Managing Director and Senior Equity Analyst of Forun Technologies. Prior to that, Mr. Qiu worked at IBM and other organizations in business and research functions. Mr. Qiu received an MBA degree from Columbia Business School, a Ph.D degree from Colorado School of Mines, and a bachelor’s degree from Wuhan University, China.

Mr. Qiu has no family relationships with any of the executive officers or directors of the Company. There have been no transactions in the past two years to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries was or is to be a party, in which Mr. Qiu had, or will have, a direct or indirect material interest.

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

Dated: January 5, 2015	CHINANET ONLINE HOLDINGS, INC.
	By:	/s/ Handong Cheng

Name:	Handong Cheng
Title:	Chief Executive Officer