Topic: China
Alibaba promises Trump it’ll create a million U.S. jobs, but don’t believe it – MarketWatch (Jan 11, 2017)
This is a great bit of analysis on the latest job creation claim from an industrial leader after meeting Donald Trump. In this case, Jennifer Booton points out that Alibaba is talking about indirect job creation in the US through a Chinese-based entity, not employing people in the US directly. But it’s another sign of both he need major tech firms seem to feel to engage with the incoming administration, and their understanding that they can ingratiate themselves with it by talking about job creation. I suspect we’ll see a lot more shaky claims about job creation made by big tech companies in the coming months and years.
via Alibaba promises Trump it’ll create a million U.S. jobs, but don’t believe it – MarketWatch
Baidu’s ‘Little Fish’ home robot could be China’s Echo – The Verge (Jan 5, 2017)
If you live in the US, it’s easy to forget that it’s one of only three countries where Echo is available, along with the UK and Germany. For all the many integrations Alexa is seeing this week at CES, there are many markets Amazon isn’t addressing directly, and China is the biggest. There will therefore be opportunities for other players in the same space in other countries, and Baidu is an obvious candidate in its domestic market.
via Baidu’s ‘Little Fish’ home robot could be China’s Echo – The Verge
Apple Removes New York Times Apps From Its Store in China – The New York Times (Jan 4, 2017)
This is the cost of doing business in China – a cost other companies have decided they’re not willing to bear. Apple has already had to shut down elements of iTunes in China, and now this. It’s not a great look for Apple in China, but this kind of thing is likely to continue to be a thorn in Apple’s side as it seeks to do business there. Striking a balance between avoiding censorship and doing just enough to stay in business there is tricky, and likely to offend quite a few people in the process.
via Apple Removes New York Times Apps From Its Store in China – The New York Times
How China Built ‘iPhone City’ With Billions in Perks for Apple’s Partner – The New York Times (Dec 29, 2016)
The partner here is Foxconn, Apple’s largest manufacturing partner, and this is an in-depth story based on lots of leaked documents. There’s lots that’s interesting here, but the reason it’s relevant is the prospect of both pressure from the Trump administration to bring manufacturing home, and the potential for a US-China trade war. Apple and Foxconn would certainly be in the crosshairs under both scenarios.
via How China Built ‘iPhone City’ With Billions in Perks for Apple’s Partner – The New York Times
Chinese investors buy stake in mapping firm HERE | Reuters (Dec 27, 2016)
HERE is Nokia’s former mapping division, which was sold to a consortium of carmakers in 2015. China is one of the most important markets for carmakers and an important new market for HERE’s map data too, so this seems a great strategic fit. And it also allows the Chinese backers access to global mapping and navigation data, which will be useful in their expansion outside China.
via Chinese investors buy stake in mapping firm HERE | Reuters
Chinese electronics firm LeEco won’t be able to close its Vizio purchase this year – Recode (Dec 24, 2016)
LeEco is a fascinating company – it’s certainly the most aggressive major Chinese tech vendor in its expansion in the US, but a major component of that expansion and building credibility in the US is the Vizio TV brand it is acquiring. It looks like that deal won’t close until early in the New Year, which will continue to hamper LeEco. But it’s far from the company’s biggest challenge – its financials continue to be a major question mark too.
via Chinese electronics firm LeEco won’t be able to close its Vizio purchase this year – Recode
US Startup Investments By China’s Internet Giants Slow Down in 2016 – CB Insights (Nov 10, 2016)
This is a great overview of some of the significant investments the four major Chinese Internet companies have made in the US over the past few years. A few things stand out: Tencent has invested significantly more than the others, both in dollar terms and in the number of individual investments; California has received 79% of the total investments made, with most other states only capturing a small number of deals or none at all; investments appear to have peaked in 2016 and dropped in 2015 (though this analysis doesn’t capture the whole of 2016). A lot of the investments are in tiny companies you’ve never heard of, but there are some exceptions: Alibaba and Tencent in Lyft and Snap; Alibaba in ShopRunner, MagicLeap, and Jet.com; Baidu in Uber; and Tencent in Cyanogen. Most of these are small minority investments, but the overall number is significant – the big Chinese companies have been far more able and willing to invest in US properties than vice versa.
via CB Insights
China Hits Qualcomm With Fine – The New York Times (Feb 9, 2015)
The context for this fine against Qualcomm is a broader crackdown by the Chinese authorities on US-based companies which compete with local ones or which are perceived to be gaining an overly dominant position in China. It would therefore also be easy to dismiss this action as more representative of a broader Chinese policy than of any wrongdoing on Qualcomm’s part. However, given all that’s happened since in Korea, the US, and China, it’s now somewhat harder to dismiss this case as being utterly without merit. There’s still the question of whether Qualcomm has genuinely done something wrong or whether Apple is merely flexing its muscles through seeking common cause with friendly regulators, but this Chinese action can now be seen as the beginning of something much bigger rather than a one-off, even if it took quite some time for that to become clear.
via New York Times