Books
12.18.19Tech Titans of China
Nicholas Brealey Publishing: The rise of China’s tech companies and intense competition from the sector is just beginning. This will present an ongoing management and strategy challenge for companies for many years to come. Tech Titans of China is the go-to guide for companies (and those interested in competition from China) seeking to understand China’s grand tech ambitions, who the players are, and what their strategy is.Featuring detailed profiles of the Chinese tech companies making waves, the tech sectors that matter most in China’s grab for super power status, and predictions for China’s tech dominance in just 10 years.{chop} Related Reading:“The Inside Story of China’s Stunning Rise from Tech Imitator to Innovator,” Marcus Baram, Fast Company, September 5, 2019
Conversation
07.30.18China May Become the World’s Leader in AI. But at What Cost?
The unprecedented amounts of data Chinese tech giants like Baidu and Alibaba collect is helping accelerate China’s development of big data and artificial intelligence (AI) applications, including facial recognition, automated retail operations, and...
ChinaFile Recommends
05.29.18China’s ‘Digital City’ Showcases Xi’s Grand Ambition
Financial Times
Transformation of rural backwater into the new Shenzhen is still some way off.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.28.18It’s Not Just Facebook: China’s Biggest Tech Company Is Getting Crushed
CNN
Tencent (TCEHY) -- the company often referred to as China's Facebook -- has lost more than $70 billion in market value over the past week.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.15.18The Battle for Digital Supremacy
Economist
“DESIGNED by Apple in California. Assembled in China”. For the past decade the words embossed on the back of iPhones have served as shorthand for the technological bargain between the world’s two biggest economies: America supplies the brains and...
ChinaFile Recommends
03.14.18Facebook, Amazon Handicapped as They Follow China Playbook
Financial Times
Amazon and Facebook grabbed headlines with groundbreaking moves last week: segueing into bank accounts and music, respectively. Groundbreaking, that is, for the west—such moves are business as normal in China.
Media
03.08.18Weibo Whack-a-Mole
from Weiboscope
China might be the world’s second-largest economy, and have more Internet users than any other country, but each year it is ranked as the nation that enjoys the least Internet freedom among the 65 sample nations scored by the U.S.-based Freedom...
ChinaFile Recommends
03.07.18China Protectionism Creates Tech Billionaires Who Protect Xi
Bloomberg
China’s tech giants will add star power to the country’s political festivities this week, paying homage to President Xi Jinping and endorsing constitutional changes for him to remain president indefinitely.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.01.18A Social Media Tycoon Is Now China’s Richest Man
CNN
Tencent CEO Ma Huateng is the country’s highest-ranked person on the Global Rich List published Wednesday by Shanghai-based wealth research firm Hurun Report.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.15.18Chinese New Year Means a Spending Spree across East Asia
CNBC
The Lunar New Year, which kicks off on Feb. 16, is East Asia’s most important holiday season.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.08.18This Week in China Tech: Xiaomi’s 460 Investments, Tencent’s Gamble and a New ‘Blockchain Academy’
Forbes
China’s technology scene is always shifting, and this week we’ve seen big news coming from Xiaomi, Tencent, Wanda, Baidu, among others. Here are the some of the most interesting tech stories out of China you might not have heard about.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.02.18How WeChat Came to Rule China
Verge
China’s most popular messaging app, WeChat, has always had a close relationship with the Chinese government. The app has been subsidized by the government since its creation in 2011, and it’s an accepted reality that officials censor and monitor...
ChinaFile Recommends
01.24.18US-China Biotech Startup XtalPi Lands $15m from Google, Tencent and Sequoia
TechCrunch
Google continues to increase its presence in China after it joined Sequoia China and Tencent in a $15 million investment for XtalPi, a U.S.-China biotech firm that uses artificial intelligence and computing to accelerate the development of new drugs.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.19.18Google Inks a Patent Deal with Tencent as It Explores Ways to Expand in China
Fortune
Alphabet‘s (GOOG, +0.31%) Google has agreed to a patent licensing deal with Tencent Holdings (TCTZF, +0.86%) as it looks for ways to expand in China where many of its products, such as app store, search engine and email service, are blocked by...
ChinaFile Recommends
01.05.18China's Social Media Giants Want Their Users to Help out with the Crushing Burden of Censorship
Quartz
China’s social media giants are ramping up efforts to get their users to turn in people circulating taboo content, as the Communist Party further tightens its grip on the country’s internet.
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12.21.17Tech Titans Wage War in China's next Internet Revolution
Wall Street Journal
As Alibaba and Tencent do battle for supremacy, companies and consumers will be caught in the crossfire
ChinaFile Recommends
11.21.17Chinese Social Media Giant Is Worth More Than Facebook
CNN
Tencent shares closed more than 2% higher in Hong Kong on Tuesday, valuing the social media and gaming giant at around $522 billion, according to FactSet. Facebook is currently worth a little over $519 billion.
ChinaFile Recommends
10.12.17China’s Tightening Grip on Tech Giants: DealBook Briefing
New York Times
If the Chinese government goes through with a plan to gain board seats at some of its country’s top technology players, will that cause problems when those companies go hunting for deals overseas?
ChinaFile Recommends
09.13.17China's Two Largest Tech Companies Sign a Deal over the West's Biggest Music
NPR
Among the deals being signed that shape the way the world experiences culture, a new partnership will exert a great influence on the flow of content from the world's three remaining major record labels to an enormous and growing marketplace —...
Sinica Podcast
09.11.17China’s Tightening Grip on Cyberspace
from Sinica Podcast
Adam Segal returns to Sinica to comment on China’s recent cybersecurity law—where it came from, how it changed as it was being drafted, and how it may shape the flow of information in China in the future. Other issues discussed include the...
ChinaFile Recommends
08.30.17Alibaba and Tencent Are Showing How Companies Can Get around Beijing's Crackdown on Foreign Deals
CNBC
The firms, among China’s most important tech giants, are overseeing the merger of two companies they back. Chinese delivery firm 58 Suyun is combining with Hong Kong logistics company GoGoVan — both have raised funds from Alibaba, and Tencent backs...
ChinaFile Recommends
08.02.17China Chatbot Goes Rogue: ‘Do You Love the Communist Party?’ ‘No’
Financial Times
Two chatbots with decidedly non-socialist characteristics were pulled from one of China’s most popular messaging apps after serving up unpatriotic answers about topics including the South China Sea and the Communist party.
ChinaFile Recommends
07.17.17In Urban China, Cash Is Rapidly Becoming Obsolete
New York Times
Almost everyone in major Chinese cities is using a smartphone to pay for just about everything. At restaurants, a waiter will ask if you want to use WeChat or Alipay — the two smartphone payment options — before bringing up cash as a third, remote...
Sinica Podcast
06.07.17Kai-Fu Lee on Artificial Intelligence in China
from Sinica Podcast
Kai-Fu Lee is one of the most prominent figures in Chinese technology. He founded China’s noted early-stage venture capital firm Sinovation Ventures after launching and heading up Google’s China operations during their years of growth from 2005 to...
ChinaFile Recommends
06.02.17Google Is Already Late to China’s AI Revolution
Wired
“Some of the major Chinese companies are some of the most sophisticated deep learning and data companies in the world.”
Books
05.02.17China’s Mobile Economy
China’s Mobile Economy: Opportunities in the Largest and Fastest Information Consumption Boom is a cutting-edge text that spotlights the digital transformation in China. Organized into three major areas of the digital economy within China, this ground-breaking book explores the surge in e-commerce of consumer goods, the way in which multi-screen and mobile Internet use has increased in popularity, and the cultural emphasis on the mobile Internet as a source of lifestyle- and entertainment-based content. Targeted at the global business community, this lucid and engaging text guides business leaders, investors, investment banking professionals, corporate advisors, and consultants in grasping the challenges and opportunities created by China’s emerging mobile economy, and its debut on the global stage.The year of 2014-15 marks the most important inflection point in the history of the Internet in China. Almost overnight, the world’s largest digitally-connected middle class went both mobile and multi-screen (smart phone, tablets, laptops, and more), with huge implications for how consumers behave and what companies need to do to successfully compete. As next-generation mobile devices and services take off, China’s strength in this arena will transform it from a global “trend follower” to a “trend setter.”Understand what the digital transformation in China is, and impact on global capital markets, foreign investors, consumer companies, and the global economy as a whole.Explore the e-commerce consumption boom in the context of the Chinese market.Understand the implications of the multi-screen age and mobile Internet for China’s consumersSee how mobile Internet use, its focus on lifestyle and entertainment is aligned with today’s Chinese culture.Learn about the mobile entertainment habits of China’s millennial generation and the corresponding new advertisement approaches.The development of China’s mobile economy is one of the most important trends that will reshape the future of business, technology, and society both in China and the world. China's Mobile Economy introduces you to the digital transformation in China, and explains how this transformation has the potential to transform both China and the global consumer landscape. —John Wiley & Sons, Inc.{chop}
ChinaFile Recommends
03.28.17China’s Tencent Bought A 5 Percent Stake in Tesla
Re/code
Tencent, a Chinese internet giant, is also an investor in Chinese ride-hail player Didi Chuxing.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.13.17China’s Weibo Eclipses Rival Twitter’s Market Capitalization
Financial Times
Shares rally on back of Chinese social platform’s ability to monetize subscriber base
ChinaFile Recommends
01.17.17Google Play and iOS Apps Demand Surges in India and China
BBC
The two leading app stores both experienced a tilt towards Asia in 2016, according to an annual study.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.06.17China Is Mad About Hollywood Remakes
Wall Street Journal
Aiming to crack new frontiers in China, Hollywood studios are turning to something familiar: established American films and TV series that can be remade for Chinese audiences.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.09.16Traditional Red Envelopes Are Going Digital Thanks To China’s Largest Internet Companies
TechCrunch
This year, Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent are all offering their own version of online red envelopes.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.01.16China's Alibaba Pictures Ousts Senior Board Member After Graft Allegations
Hollywood Reporter
The company hasn't been able to contact the former Tencent executive since he was detained by authorities in July.
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10.28.15Hong Kong Is the Happiest Place in China, According to WeChat Posts
Quartz
Hong Kong is home to the happiest people in Greater China, closely followed by Taiwan, according to Tencent.
Books
08.27.15China’s Disruptors
In September 2014, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba raised $25 billion in the world’s biggest-ever initial public offering. Since then, millions of investors and managers worldwide have pondered a fundamental question: What’s really going on with the new wave of China’s disruptors?Alibaba wasn’t an outlier—it’s one of a rising tide of thriving Chinese companies, mostly but not exclusively in the technology sector. Overnight, its founder, Jack Ma, appeared on the same magazine covers as American entrepreneurial icons like Mark Zuckerberg. Ma was quickly followed by the founders of other previously little-known companies, such as Baidu, Tencent, and Xiaomi.Over the past two decades, an unprecedented burst of entrepreneurialism has transformed China’s economy from a closed, impoverished, state-run system into a major power in global business. As products in China become more and more sophisticated, and as its companies embrace domestically developed technology, we will increasingly see Chinese goods setting global standards. Meanwhile, companies in the rest of the world wonder how they can access the fast-rising incomes of China’s 1.3 billion consumers.Now Edward Tse, a leading global strategy consultant, reveals how China got to this point, and what the country’s rise means for the United States and the rest of the world. Tse has spent more than twenty years working with senior Chinese executives, learning firsthand how China’s most powerful companies operate. He’s an expert on how private firms are thriving in what is still, officially, a communist country. His book draws on exclusive interviews and case studies to explore questions such as:What drives China’s entrepreneurs? Personal fame and fortune—or a quest for national pride and communal achievement?How do these companies grow so quickly? In 2005, Lenovo sold just one category of products (personal computers) in one market, China. Today, not only is it the world’s largest PC seller; it is also the world’s third-largest smartphone seller.How does Chinese culture shape the strategies and tactics of these business leaders? Can outsiders copy what the Chinese are doing?Can capitalists really thrive within a communist system? How does Tencent’s Pony Ma serve as a member of China’s parliament while running a company that dominates online games and messaging?What impact will China have on the rest of the world as its private companies enter new markets, acquire foreign businesses, and threaten established firms in countless industries?As Tse concludes: “I believe that as a consequence of the opening driven by China’s entrepreneurs, the push to invest in science, research, and development, and the new freedoms that people are enjoying across the country, China has embarked on a renaissance that could rival its greatest era in history—the Tang dynasty. These entrepreneurs are the front line in China’s intense hunger for success. They will have an even more remarkable impact on the global economy in the future, through the rest of this decade and beyond.” —Portfolio/Penguin{chop}
ChinaFile Recommends
06.09.15Tencent Customers Come for the Music, Stay for the Perks
Wall Street Journal
Internet giant tries to pull off something few have achieved in China: get people to pay for digital music.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.29.15N.B.A. Signs Deal With Chinese Internet Giant
New York Times
The N.B.A. will receive $500 million, with $200 million more expected through a revenue-sharing arrangement between the league and Tencent, a social media powerhouse.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.07.15China Cities Crack Down on Illegal Cabs Using Car-Hailing Apps
Bloomberg
The Chinese capital will impose fines of as much as 20,000 yuan ($3,200) each on 41 unauthorized vehicles that offered rental services via the apps, CNR said Jan. 7.
ChinaFile Recommends
04.16.14Billions of Hours Wasted: Candy Crush Comes to China
Wall Street Journal
Tencent will promote King Enterainment's highly addictive game on its mobile chat application WeChat, which now has 355 million monthly active users.
Media
03.26.14A Wrinkle to Those Hot Chinese Tech IPOs
Investors, ready your wallets. In the past week, Sina Weibo, China’s massive microblogging platform with 280 million users, and Alibaba, the operator of China’s largest online marketplace which generated $1.84 billion in revenue in the fourth...
Media
03.17.14‘Self-Media’ Pushes and Beijing Pushes Back
Michelle Song, twenty-four, studies international relations at Beijing’s prestigious Peking University and lives in a dormitory, so she doesn’t watch television regularly and doesn’t subscribe to newspapers. But this has not hampered her ability to...
Media
03.14.14The Other Shoe Drops
Welcome to the big leagues, WeChat.For the past year, the mobile chat app WeChat, or Weixinin Chinese, has been the fresh new face in China’s hyperactive social media, stealing millions of members—not to mention mojo—from its wounded but still...
ChinaFile Recommends
01.06.14China Approves Pilot Plan to Set Up 3-5 Private Banks
Reuters
In a step to boost financial support for cash-starved smaller firms, The China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) has announced its plan to maintain “prudential regulatory standards” in approving private banks.
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09.26.13China’s Tencent Expands Search Engine Presence With Sogou Deal
Marketplace
Tencent is spending $448 million to buy a 36.5 percent stake in Sogou, a local search engine owned by Chinese company Sohu.com. As part of the deal, Tencent’s own search engine, Soso, will merge with Sogou, the companies said.
ChinaFile Recommends
08.12.13Monster Zombie Spider to Crush Super Mario’s China Dreams
Bloomberg
Can Nintendo’s Super Mario take on Tencent Holding’s giant, undead Spider? As the country ends a 13-year ban on consoles, a generation of gamers have grown used to a free online model and increasingly migrating to mobile...
ChinaFile Recommends
08.08.13Alibaba Duels With Tencent for Online Dominance in China
Bloomberg
Two of China’s richest men are intensifying their rivalry over the world’s biggest Internet market. Both have made purchases and encroached on each other’s established markets in the battle for dominance of the country’s online spending...
Caixin Media
04.15.13Tencent Lets WeChat’s Rapid Growth Do the Talking
Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s free messaging service, WeChat, has seen its popularity grow among both individual users and businesses, even amid a dispute with the Big Three telecom operators [China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom].Since launching...
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04.12.13WeChat War Escalates, Becomes Showdown Between Government And Internet Users
Most Internet users believe that China’s three state-owned telecom operators are pushing for the introdction of a fee scheme to popular messaging app WeChat because their core SMS and voice business are threatened by the app.
Sinica Podcast
11.12.10The End of Chinese Internet Civility
from Sinica Podcast
Simmering tensions between Qihoo 360 and Tencent broke into open war last week, as Tencent disabled its chat software on computers running 360 antivirus software. This move was the most aggressive yet in a serious of escalating attacks between the...