Bottom line: Improved working environments are allowing Chinese tech firms to compete with multinationals for top talent, a template that state-run firms and other industries would be wise to follow.
Xiaomi attracts top exec from Spotify
Fast-rising smartphone maker Xiaomi made headlines last week when it lured away a top western executive from European online music streaming giant Spotify by offering him an attractive new job at its Beijing headquarters. The move marks the latest in a stream of high-profile defections by technology executives from comfortable jobs at major western firms to join up-and-coming Chinese names like Xiaomi and Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU).
The movement reflects a maturation for China’s fast-growing high-tech sector, whose rapid rise and improving working conditions are making companies more competitive with big western names traditionally preferred by many highly-skilled workers. But the trend is still limited mostly to China’s private high-tech sector, and is largely absent in state-run firms and other industries. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Hugo Barra’s remarks in defense of criticism that his employer Xiaomi copies Apple’s designs could mark the start of a longer-term war of words that could end in one or more lawsuits by Apple.
Barra defends Xiaomi’s copycat ways
A trans-Pacific war of words that began with critical remarks made by Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) chief designer 2 weeks ago is continuing, with the foreign face of Chinese smartphone sensation Xiaomi giving fresh remarks on the copycat controversy in his company’s defense. The comments from Xiaomi’s international marketing head Hugo Barra are a bit lame in my view, and I really doubt he would have made such remarks last year when he was still a rising star at global Internet giant Google (Nasdaq: GOOG). Read Full Post…
China’s bloody smartphone price wars could soon claim their first victim, with word of massive price cuts from Smartisan, a highbrow brand that launched earlier this year with backing from a well-known personality. Despite its relatively late arrival to the crowded space, Smartisan has gotten surprisingly strong media attention since its launch in May, though not all of it has been positive.
One of the company’s main backers is Luo Yonghao, whose name is well known to many young Chinese professionals due to his popular series of English language instructional tapes. Just months after its launch, Smartisan made news after admitting it was experiencing production problems due to capacity bottlenecks. Last month the company also made a minor splash when Luo got in a high-profile online spat with an influential gadget critic who wasn’t impressed by Smartisan’s models.
Ripples from Hewlett-Packard’s (NYSE: HPQ) decision to break itself into 2 companies are being felt in China, with word that HP is looking for someone to buy a majority stake in its China-based router division. I can immediately think of 2 Chinese firms that would be interested in the stake, namely homegrown networking equipment giant Huawei and also leading PC maker Lenovo (HKEx: 992).
China’s second largest networking equipment maker ZTE (HKEx: 763; NYSE: 000063) could also be interested, even though it doesn’t have a past record for major acquisitions. There’s also the chance that one of Europe’s major networking equipment makers might be interested, with Ericsson (Stockholm: ERICb) or Nokia (Helsinki: NOK1V) as the most likely choices. Read Full Post…
New sales data for August is showing that China’s cellphone market is rapidly cooling due to saturation, putting even more pressure on domestic brands that have engaged in a battle for share that has resulted in plummeting prices. At the same time, a separate report is showing that mobile advertising is zooming, in a development that’s almost certain to mean big headaches for companies like Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) and Sina (Nasdaq: SINA) that depend heavily on advertisers that traditionally targeted desktop PC users. The pair of trends both cast a spotlight on how quickly things can change in the tech and media landscapes, putting huge pressure on established companies to innovate and spend heavily to translate their leadership into emerging areas. Read Full Post…
After fraying under a steady stream of disputes over the last 2 years, China-Western trade relations took a much-needed turn for the better last week with new reports showing that Beijing and its major trading partners were taking constructive steps to reduce the tensions. Two reports indicated Beijing will take steps to reduce some of the government support it gives to emerging high-tech industries, addressing a sore spot in its trade relations with the west. Read Full Post…
A new cloud computing tie-up between US networking equipment giant Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO) and leading Chinese TV maker TCL (HKEx: 1070; Shenzhen: 000100) caught my attention more due to its broader implications for both companies rather than the modest size of the actual investment. The deal comes as Cisco is facing difficulties in China, the direct result of an ongoing spat between Washington and Beijing over cyber security. At the same time, it also represents the latest in a string of recent signals that TCL is eying some new global alliances, a decade after 2 high-profile tie-ups with other western partners ended in disaster. Read Full Post…
Several significant telecoms stories are buzzing through the headlines as China returns to work after a long holiday, led by news that iPhone sales have gotten off to a roaring start after initially hitting a regulatory roadblock in the world’s largest mobile market. Also of interest is word that China and the European Union are close to settling a long-running dispute that could give European networking equipment makers better access to the lucrative Chinese market. And finally there’s a bit of regulatory news that looks like a positive sign, showing China is trying to cut its vast bureaucracy to provide easier market access for makers of telecoms products. Read Full Post…
So much has been written already about the sudden approval of the iPhone 6 in China, after several weeks of unexplained delays, that I thought I would focus on the broader implications of this surprise move in the ongoing war of words between the US and China over cyber security.
I praised iPhone maker Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) in August for emerging as a voice of reason in this war of words after it decided to use China-based servers for to store some of its local user data (previous post), and it seems like more praise is in order this time as well. Only this time the praise should go to Beijing, for finally taking a break from the cyber security war of words by realizing that companies like Apple are far more interested in doing business than engaging in cloak-and-dagger spying games. Read Full Post…
A trio of headlines are shining a spotlight on a new twist in the brutally competitive smartphone market, where national security is suddenly becoming a major new headache for manufacturers. In one headline, Chinese smartphone sensation Xiaomi is being investigated in Taiwan for national security risks related to the storage of local user data on some offshore mainland Chinese-based computers. In a similar news bit, Beijing is reportedly considering forbidding government workers from using foreign-made smartphones.
And in yet another related story, global smartphone giant Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) is reportedly finally on the cusp of winning approval to sell its new iPhone 6 in China, following an embarrassing delay that may be related to the cybersecurity issue. Read Full Post…
Two major news events were at the center of the microblogging realm this past week, as tech executives from across the spectrum commented on the blockbuster IPO for Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) and the debut of latest iPhone from Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL). Executives were generally full of praise for the Alibaba IPO, which shattered numerous records when the stock began trading last Friday in New York. But there were also some hints of jealousy, as top executives from fast-fading e-commerce rival Dangdang (NYSE: DANG) and security software maker Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) suffered from valuation envy.
Meantime, domestic smartphone makers Huawei and ZTE (HKEx: 763; Shenzhen: 000063) took advantage of the iPhone’s formal launch last Friday to tout their own products, which are far cheaper and enjoy a reputation for reasonable quality. But unlike the iPhone, Huawei and ZTE still suffer from the “Made in China” stigma, and don’t command anything near the level of respect and buzz that the iPhone gets. Read Full Post…
