I don’t know if anyone else has noticed this, but a lot of Chinese Internet firms suddenly seem to be engaged in a series of major reorganizations. I came to this conclusion after reading this morning that Suning.com (Shenzhen: 002024), one of China’s top e-commerce firms, has just undergone a major structural reorganization as part of what the company says is a regular exercise. (Chinese article) News of this latest reorganization comes the same week that headlines have been buzzing with news of another major reorganization at Tencent (HKEx: 700), China’s leading Internet company. (Chinese article)
Search Results for: baidu e-commerce
Facebook Forges Links, Sina Shuffles; Facebook未弃中国梦 新浪或将一分为二
News involving a new China tie-up by Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) will undoubtedly reignite speculation that the social networking giant could finally enter the world’s biggest Internet market in 2013, fulfilling the long-stated goal of company founder Mark Zuckerberg. Meanwhile in other Internet news, leading web portal Sina (Nasdaq: SINA) is reportedly undergoing yet another new internal shuffle, foreshadowing major changes in store for one of China’s oldest online companies in 2013.
Qihoo, Group Buying Set For 2013 Growth 奇虎360、团购网站明年料增长
As we approach the end of 2012, online search and group buying look like 2 spaces on China’s Internet that could see some big changes in the year ahead and provide some interesting investment opportunities. In the online search space, the new year could well shape up as the one when dominant search engine Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) finally received some serious competition from Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU), which is quickly adding important features to its up-and-coming search service launched over the summer. Meantime, the new year could also see the revival of some of the nation’s beleaguered group buying sites, which have spent the past year in a bloody retrenchment that has seen many players either close or merge with rivals. In that space, we’re getting word that 55tuan, one of the former top players, has finally managed to turn a profit after altering its business model.
Weibo, WeChat Set For 2013 Showdown 微博、微信将于2013年决战
An epic battle on the Chinese Internet is shaping up for the New Year, pitting dominant social networking site (SNS) Sina (Nasdaq: SINA) Weibo against up-and-coming challenger WeChat, also known by its Chinese name Weixin. The looming battle in many ways reflects the rapid rise in China of the mobile Internet, where WeChat has found an eager new audience that likes to use SNS all the time instead of only at desktop computers where Sina Weibo dominates.
Yahoo: Preparing For China Exit? 雅虎关闭在华音乐搜索服务 全面撤离即将来临？
The headlines have been buzzing this week with word that tarnished former Internet titan Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) will shutter its Chinese Internet music service, with many pointing out the move reflects a broader reshuffling in the online music space. But from my perspective, the much more intriguing question is whether this move represents the first small step before Yahoo withdraws from the market completely — a step that seems increasingly likely as it focuses on turning around its core US search business.
Alibaba, Sohu Win US Anti-Piracy Nod 阿里巴巴、搜狐被从美国盗版名单上移除
Chinese e-commerce leader Alibaba and web portal Sohu (Nasdaq: SOHU) won a major victory last week when web sites operated by both were removed from an annual US list of companies that facilitate rampant piracy. The victory came after both firms made efforts to aggressively police their sites and quickly remove any pirated or counterfeit materials. While the companies should be commended for their effort, the achievement came with an important footnote that shows there is still work to be done.
China Mobile on Services Steroids 中国移动重拳出击
After praising China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) just last week for finally returning its focus to the present under a new top management team installed earlier this year, I feel compelled to update my previous view by expressing a slight concern at a sudden flurry of new initiatives from the company. In the last 24 hours alone, I’ve read reports of at least 3 new moves by China’s largest mobile carrier all aimed at tapping the growing market for high-speed telecoms services.
IPOs: New Noise From Xunlei, Jingdong 迅雷看看、京东商城或明年上市
New noises are coming from online video site Xunlei and e-commerce giant Jingdong Mall that indicate a US or Hong Kong IPO or other equity sale may be coming soon, as each looks for new cash to fund its money-losing operations. But that said, the latest signals from these 2 Internet companies indicate that neither will be able to tap a rare window in the offshore IPO market that appeared last week when commercially-focused social networking site YY (Nasdaq: YY) made the first successful public offering by a Chinese firm in New York in more than a year. (previous post)
Sohu: China’s Biggest Little Net Firm 搜狗拟分拆上市
I had to smile this morning when I read the latest reports on Sohu (Nasdaq: SOHU), one of China’s oldest web firms, which I’m officially christening as “China’s biggest little Internet company” following word that it plans to make an IPO for its Sogou search engine. If readers note some sarcasm in my tone, it’s certainly there. But at the same time, I do have a certain level of fascination with this company, which seems determined to spin off as many of its units as possible into separate publicly listed companies.
Online Search: More Growth for Qihoo, Sogou 奇虎360和搜狗继续抢占搜索市场份额
Recent gains in online search by Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) and Sohu’s (Nasdaq: SOHU) Sogou are in the headlines today, highlighting the challenges industry leader Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) is facing from a new rival that is quickly gaining momentum and an older rival that also appears to be gaining some traction. At the center of the story is new data for October showing that Qihoo controlled nearly 10 percent of the China search market, just 3 months after the company launched an innovative new search engine. (previous post) Meantime, Sohu’s Sogou search engine, launched nearly a decade ago, also posted a respectable 7.5 percent share, as it reported its search revenue more than doubled in its latest reporting quarter.
Qunar Joins Year-End IPO Queue 去哪儿网有望年底赴美上市
We’re seeing growing signs that a mini-parade of Chinese IPOs could march through New York in the last 2 months of 2012, with word that online travel site Qunar hopes to list in the US by the end of the year. (Chinese article) If the reports are true, Qunar would join a small but growing list of Chinese companies that could make US listings by year end, with video sharing sites operated by Xunlei and Sohu (Nasdaq: SOHU) also sending similar signals. (previous post) If these listings go well, we could even see one of the shakier companies that has been waiting patiently to make a listing quickly move forward with an IPO, with online clothing retailer Vancl the most likely candidate in this category.
