Let’s start the day with a look at the latest Internet TV tie-up between leading TV maker TCL Multimedia (HKEx: 1070) and online search leader Baidu, the latter of which has suddenly discovered a huge appetite for similar new partnerships. I need to start off by saying that anyone who didn’t see this latest tie-up coming must be living in a cave, as media previously reported on it a few weeks ago and TCL chief Li Dongsheng has been talking about it non-stop on his microblog these last few days. I’ve previously said that I like this deal for reasons I’ll recap shortly (previous post); but now that the deal is official, what’s more intriguing is the potential for a stronger tie-up in the future, including a potential equity swap or even a purchase of TCL Multimedia by Baidu. Read Full Post…
Tag Archives: Baidu
News Digest: September 4, 2013
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on September 4. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- China’s Bright Food In Talks To Buy Israeli Food Group Tnuva (English article)
- Baidu’s (Nasdaq: BIDU) iQiyi to Sell TCL (HKEx: 1070) Smart TVs (English article)
- Bank Of America (NYSE: BAC) Selling Remaining Stake In Chinese Bank (English article)
- Starboard Lines Up Rival Buyers For Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) (English article)
- Youku (NYSE: YOKU) Original Masters’ Short Films Pull in 10 Mln Views In 1st Month (PRNewswire)
Xiaomi Steals Google Exec On Road To Global Stage
Most of the world is buzzing with speculation about what prompted a top Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) executive to defect to Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, but few are giving much credit to one of China’s hottest tech companies for luring Hugo Barra to join its ranks. Most media are focusing instead on an apparent love triangle between Google co-founder Sergey Brin and an unnamed current love interest, who just happens to be an ex-girlfriend of Barra. (English article) But instead, I would venture to guess that Barra’s departure has less to do with this titillating love story, and more to do with Xiaomi’s aggressive global aspirations, including its recent receipt of $2 billion in new funding — the most ever for a privately funded China tech firm. (previous post) Read Full Post…
Baidu Tackles Internet TV, Youku Next?
In the latest signal of the growing popularity of Internet TV, leading search engine Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) is reportedly preparing a tie-up in the space to promote its iQiyi online video service with top domestic TV maker TCL Multimedia (HKEx: 1070). The rapid growth in this area over the last year has been quite interesting to watch, as a number of major private companies have been piling into the space with new Internet-based offerings in a bid to challenge China’s notoriously slow and uncreative traditional TV sector. Read Full Post…
Qihoo Milks Rally With $600 Mln Bond Offer
Software security specialist Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) is pouncing on a recent rally in its shares to announce a massive new bond offering, becoming the latest in a select group of top Chinese tech firms to raise big new funds as investor enthusiasm returns to the sector. Following its announcement of upbeat earnings earlier this week, Qihoo has followed with word of the plan to offer senior 5-year notes worth $600 million. To put things in perspective, that amount is equal to more than 6 percent of the company’s market value, which is already quite inflated after Qihoo’s shares have nearly quadrupled over the last year. Read Full Post…
News Digest: August 28, 2013
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on August 28. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- China Investigates More Top PetroChina (HKEx: 857) Executives Over Corruption (English article)
- Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) Offers $550 Mln Convertible Senior Notes (PRNewswire)
- Baidu’s (Nasdaq: BIDU) iQiyi, TCL To Announce Internet TV Next Week – Source (Chinese article)
- China Approves Mediatek (Taipei: 2454), MStar Merger With Conditions (English article)
- LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK) Reports Q2 Financial Results (PRNewswire)
- Latest calendar for Q2 earnings reports (Earnings calendar)
Xiaomi Joins $10 Bln Club
Froth in company valuations seems to be building once again in China’s high-tech realm, with word that up-and-coming smartphone maker Xiaomi’s latest fund raising values the company at more than $10 billion. The last time I wrote about such a rapidly rising valuation was about 2 years ago when an investor in high flying e-commerce site Jingdong proclaimed that company was also worth more than $10 billion. Jingdong’s value later came down considerably, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Xiaomi’s latest valuation is also just a bit too high on too much investor enthusiasm about this company that is growing fast but also playing in a very competitive market. Read Full Post…
News Digest: August 24-26
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on August 24-26. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- Huawei, ZTE (HKEx: 763) Win Bulk Of China Mobile’s $3 Bln 4G Bonanza (English article)
- Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Invests In Renren’s (NYSE: RENN) Nuomi (PRNewswire)
- Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) To Open 4th Shanghai Store Before Oct 1 Holiday – Report (Chinese article)
- Electric Carmaker Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) Hits Roadblock In China Over Trademark (English article)
- China Commerce Ministry Warns Auto Makers Over Price Monopoly (English article)
- Latest calendar for Q2 earnings reports (Earnings calendar)
News Digest: August 23, 2013
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on August 23. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- Lilly (NYSE: LLY) Says Deeply Concerned By Bribery Allegations In China (English article)
- Geely (HKEx: 175) to Offer Vehicles Jointly Developed With Volvo in 2015 (English article)
- Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Unveils Light App Distribution Platform (English article)
- PetroChina (HKEx: 857) Announces H1 Financial Results (HKEx announcement)
- New Xiaomi Funding Values Company At More Than $10 Bln (Chinese article)
- Latest calendar for Q2 earnings reports (Earnings calendar)
Alibaba, HKEx Spar Over IPO Terms
An interesting war of wills is shaping up between the Hong Kong stock exchange (HKEx) and e-commerce giant Alibaba, which looks increasingly determined to make its highly anticipated multibillion-dollar IPO in Hong Kong rather than New York. Alibaba’s apparent determination to keep its listing closer to its home China market is understandable, since the Hong Kong stock exchange is already home to China’s biggest listed Internet company, Tencent (HKEx: 700). But that said, Alibaba’s only personal experience with a public listing was also in Hong Kong, and that listing involving its B2B unit Alibaba.com was largely a failure. Shares of Alibaba.com initially soared after their 2007 IPO, but then were largely ignored by investors due to slowing growth, prompting Alibaba to ultimately privatize the company last year. Read Full Post…
News Digest: August 20, 2013
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on August 20. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- China Telecom, NetEase (Nasdaq: NTES) In JV For Instant Messaging App “YiChat” (PRNewswire)
- LightInTheBox (NYSE: LITB) Reports Q2 Financial Results (Businesswire)
- Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Acquires Mobile Ad Provider UUCUN – Source (English article)
- China Bans More New Zealand Dairy Products On New Contamination Scare (English article)
- MIIT To Issue 4G Licenses For TD-LTE Around Oct 1 Holiday – Source (Chinese article)
- Latest calendar for Q2 earnings reports (Earnings calendar)