Preparing for the online world war from China - William Bao Bean

William Bao Bean

The internet in China has been dominated by four huge players, Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu and Sina Weibo. After crushing their domestic competitors, they are now ready for the online world war, says VC William Bao Bean at Next16 the German audience about startups. "You're under-funded, too slow and don't work hard enough."

Next16:

Think of it as a world war, says William. Each of the big four were good at one thing in the beginning - and it was different for all of them. The first generation entrepreneurs didn't retire and become VCs. They stayed and crushed the competition. And now they're fighting with each other. Then they're go to the rest of Asia. And eventually they'll come to Europe and the US. And their game plan is to control ALL commerce... 

Cabs and food delivery have been a war, says William. Half of China has been eating 50% off for a year through VC money. Over $2bn has been spent on taxi subsidies per company. Über fought to a draw. They did well... 

You have to run the business from China, not Germany. Let it go - and expect things to break. You need to break things to succeed in China. China is investing in startups and 4.4 times the rate of Europe as a whole. 99% of companies do not below in China. You're under-funded, too slow and don't work hard enough.

More at Next16.

William Bao Bean is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers´request form.

Are you looking for more experts on innovation? Do check out this list.  

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The dynamic state of the social media in 2016 - Sam Flemming

Sam Flemming

China´s social media have been developing fast and Sam Flemming, CEO of Kantar Media CIC, gives an update on the five most important developments for AdAge. China´s social media landscape is different from the West:  It's unique, fragmented and dynamic.

Sam Flemming:

The Chinese social media landscape moves fast – and if you haven't been paying attention closely, there's a lot you've missed. New platforms have popped up, while main players including Alibaba and Tencent have consolidated their power. In general, China's social landscape is involved in innovations in video, engagement and payment that have evolved differently and faster than anything in the West... 

The BATS, the core of China's digital and social landscape, have grown ever more powerful 

Chinese internet powerhouses Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent and Sina (referred to by the acronym "BATS") together have upwards of eight different social media and/or e-commerce platforms, each with hundreds of millions of active users. They are the absolute core of China's social and digital landscape because of their cumulative 2 billion users. These key players are at the heart of making the Chinese internet viral, informative and practical. Let's call that "VIP." The "I" and the "P" are particularly important in differentiating China from the rest of the world. Trusted Information in China can be scarce, while the plentiful information on social media such as news, word of mouth and rumors is often the type of content that cannot be found anywhere else, even with government regulators keeping a close watch. This makes social media more important in China than most global markets.

Four more points in AdAge.

Sam Flemming is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers´request form.

Are you looking for more internet experts at the China Speakers Bureau? Do check out this list.

Why Sina Weibo is a winner, despite rules - Jeremy Goldkorn

Jeremy Goldkorn

Despite much domestic competition, the twitter-like service Sina Weibo is technical better and offering most interesting conversations,tells internet watcher Jeremy Goldkorn in the Artman Talks. And why the 'real name registration' did not really work.

Nanny instincts from the government to register the real names of weibo users did not work, just like previous efforts for user registration. "It is an authoritarian system not being that authoritarian at all." Revenue for companies seems to be more important than real control, Goldkorn says, explaining why shutting down popular internet services is not high on the agenda.

More in the Artman Talks. Listen here for the full podcast.

Jeremy Goldkorn is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting of conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' registration form.

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The shot across the bow of internet companies - Jeremy Goldkorn

Jeremy Goldkorn

After weeks of flying rumors on the internet, China's authorities moved in to curtail stories on disposed leader Bo Xilai and even about a coup d'etat. Internet watcher Jeremy Goldkorn guides us in The Guardian through the political minefield.

The Guardian:

"The underlying problem is that you can't get the truth out of the government, so you might as well believe stuff flying around on the internet," agreed Jeremy Goldkorn, who runs the Danwei website on Chinese media. "But what this does is remind everyone who is in charge … Sina and Tencent are going to be pretty cautious and I think will be stepping up censorship: this is a shot across the bows." 

Some have asked why rumours about senior political leaders – particularly Bo – have circulated for so long recently, given that censors are usually quick to delete such speculation. 

"I do get the sense that some things have been tolerated that perhaps in other times would not be. Certainly, it seems it's been allowed that enough has been circulated about Bo Xilai to blacken his name," said Goldkorn.

More in The Guardian.

Jeremy Goldkorn is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' request form.

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Will "real name' policy threaten online discourse? - Tricia Wang

Tricia Wang

China's internet users baptized the National People's Congress as the "Beijing Fashion Week", as a barely veiled excuse to deliver sarcastic comments, writes sociologist Tricia Wang (with co-author An Xiao Mina) in Wired. But that might be over when the 'real name' policy kicks in this week.

Tricia Wang:

Yes, there are scattered, unabashed criticisms of the elite on Sina Weibo, China’s most popular and active microblog service. But subterfuge like “Beijing Fashion Week” helps China’s netizens feel safer about mocking the country’s all-powerful ruling class. 

It’s becoming a familiar dodge on Sina Weibo, which functions similarly to Twitter and invites quick, frequent updates — but unlike Twitter, the bulk of whose members are in the United States, does not operate in a country where political speech is protected. 

And all this may change in the face of a new, more stringent policy designed to clamp down on free expression where other methods have been less successful. In a move to exert greater control on citizen speech online, the government is requiring that Sina Weibo and China’s other microblogs register the real names and identification cards of users in several cities. Those who do not register this week in many major cities like Beijing will not be allowed to share or forward posts; after a period of testing, the policy will go into effect nationwide... 

Even worse: the policy also threatens the vast majority of people who are not aware of or do not engage in political commentary. Just as many Facebook users now think twice about what they share online — even if not particularly controversial — real name registration may dampen the fun of microblogs as a casual place to let out some steam and relax with relative anonymity. 

Microblogs have become a particularly lively, important and rare forum of public discussion in China. Real-name registration threatens this. And that is a major cause of concern for anyone hoping for a more free and open internet here.

More in Wired.

Tricia Wang is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' request form.

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Weibo stopped toeing the party line after railway crash - Jeremy Goldkorn

Jeremy Goldkorn

China's successful microblogging service Weibo ignored the party line, as the online anger about the railway crash near Wenzhou exploded. Internet watcher Jeremy Goldkorn explains in CNN the government is trying to put the ghost back into the bottle. Yang Feng, who lost family in the crash, became an overnight hero.

CNN:

While [the official broadcaster] CCTV shunned him, Yang became an overnight hero in the eyes of Chinese netizens who were riled by the government response to the accident, especially the perceived ineptitude and arrogance of the railway ministry. Less than 24 hours after he posted his first message on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, Yang has gained more than 110,000 followers.

"The closer you get to the centrally controlled media, the more they toe the Communist Party line," explained Jeremy Goldkorn, a long-time Chinese media observer whose Danwei website monitors the industry. "For this accident, Weibo posts have been so far ahead of official responses."...

For Weibo users, however, any sense of vindication may prove short-lived. Analysts say Internet censors have already begun deleting more posts as netizens became critical of not just the scandal-plagued railway ministry but also of the flaws of the political system.

"They are trying to shove the genie back in the bottle," media observer Goldkorn said. "Weibo is such an effective amplifier of people's dissatisfaction that it is worrying the government a lot."

Now Yang has turned uncharacteristically quiet. Pleading for his supporters' understanding, he alluded in his most recent Weibo posts that he was under tremendous pressure to keep a low profile for the well-being of his family -- including his father-in-law, who survived the train crash.

More in the aftermath of the railway crash at CNN.

Jeremy Goldkorn is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch.

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Social media fight zombie users - Sam Flemming

Sam Flemming

Most social media users know these non-human 'followers', who increase traffic without participating in a real conversation. Sam Flemming reports that his company CIC has analyzed these skeleton or zombie users. News: internet celebrity Lee Kaifu has a million of them.

What is according to Sam Flemming a skeleton user?

On the most basic level, skeleton users are purely virtual; generated by programs without ever having a real person attached, or meat on their digital bones. They are simply used to increase an account’s followers. However, the technology behind skeleton users is becoming increasingly advanced; proper profile pictures and periodic activity based on a preset program, so they act like a real person is behind them. Naturally though, users who employ skeleton users on mass experience little effect on engagement levels.

It’s no secret that there are agencies “employing” skeleton users in the dark arts of campaign execution; skeletons can be commanded to follow, retweet, comment and even take part in online polls. In fact, a host of B2B services have sprung up to cater for PR agencies striving to reach their contracted KPI of followers.

But social media have started to fight back:

Sina Weibo has officially announced that they will  combat skeleton users and is encouraging users to report any scams and skeletons they encounter through official portals and skeleton-busting Weibo accounts (such as these two: @系统管理员 & @虚假活动曝光)

More at Sam Flemming's weblog.

Sam Flemming is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you need him at your meeting or conference, do get in touch.

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