Ged Carroll

Category: china | 中國 | 중국 | 中華

Ni hao – this category features any blog posts that relate to the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese communist party, Chinese citizens, consumer behaviour, business, and Chinese business abroad.

It is likely the post will also in other categories too.  For example a post about Tong Ren Tang might end up in the business section as well. Inevitably everything is inherently political in nature. At the moment, I don’t take suggestions for subject areas or comments on content for this category, it just isn’t worth the hassle.

Why have posts on China? I have been involved in projects there and had Chinese clients. China has some interesting things happening in art, advertising, architecture, design and manufacturing. I have managed to experience some great and not so great aspects of the country and its businesses.

Opinions have been managed by the omnipresent party and this has affected consumer behaviour. Lotte was boycotted and harassed out of the country. Toyota and Honda cars occasionally go through damage by consumer action during particularly high tensions with Japan.

I put stuff here to allow readers to make up their own  minds about the PRC. The size of the place makes things complicated and the only constants are change, death, taxes and the party. Things get even more complicated on the global stage.

The unique nature of the Chinese internet and sheltered business sectors means that interesting Galapagos syndrome type things happen.

I have separate sections for Taiwan and Hong Kong, for posts that are specific to them.

  • Nozoe Kuniaki & more news

    Nozoe Kuniaki

    Former CEO of Fujitsu Nozoe Kuniaki (野副州旦) – blackmail forced his resignation | Japan: Stippy – interesting story of boardroom intrigue. Nozoe Kuniaki was originally said to have resigned due to ill health. The FT reported that Nozoe Kuniaki was really forced to resign by Fujitsu. Apparently Nozoe Kuniaki was forced to resign over links to a company of “unfavourable reputation”. The FT hints the roots of this palace putsch: apparently Nozoe Kuniaki was opposed by colleagues due to his drive to refocus the group on IT services at the expense of unprofitable electronics divisions, including its hard disk drive business.

    China

    FT.com / China – China faces shortages of migrant workers – this is more about structural change than an economic problem, the demographic bomb hasn’t kicked in yet. Shenzhen and similar areas will go to higher value products and industry permeate deeper into the country FT.com / Asia-Pacific – Labour shortage hits China export recovery

    Consumer behaviour

    When Trying to Preserve the Planet Strains the Relationship – NYTimes.com – environmentalism causing maritial strife

    Culture

    Axe Cop – genius: a 5 year-old script writer and a 29 year-old illustrator create an awesome comic

    From Quantic Dream, a Child Killer and a Tormented Dad – NYTimes.com – interesting new direction in gaming. In some ways it reminds me of Myst and the vision that Philips had for the CD-i platform

    Economics

    Economists Urge Government to Stop War on Piracy | TorrentFreak – Digital Economy Bill-type measures don’t make economic sense according to Spanish economists

    Innovation

    Op-Ed Contributor – Microsoft’s Creative Destruction – NYTimes.com – “Microsoft has become a clumsy, uncompetitive innovator. Its products are lampooned, often unfairly but sometimes with good reason. Its image has never recovered from the antitrust prosecution of the 1990s. Its marketing has been inept for years; remember the 2008 ad in which Bill Gates was somehow persuaded to literally wiggle his behind at the camera?” and “Microsoft’s huge profits — $6.7 billion for the past quarter — come almost entirely from Windows and Office programs first developed decades ago. Like G.M. with its trucks and S.U.V.’s, Microsoft can’t count on these venerable products to sustain it forever.”

    Chinese Premier Talks Up Internet of Things – NYTimes.com – interesting stuff here, however we need to move to IPv6 addresses fast in order to take advantage of it

    Ireland

    RTÉ News: ‘Guerrilla street’ hurling in US capital

    Japan

    Grads return to watches as job-hunter prop | The Japan Times Online – watches used to give the impression of being well-organised

    Tech Lawyers Say ‘Uh Oh’ as Microsoft Outsources Legal Work to India

    Google and antitrust: Searching questions | The Economist

    Slapdash Bill will damage Britain’s digital economy – The Irish Times – Fri, Nov 27, 2009 – external perspective on the forthcoming Digital Economy Bill

    Media

    Leaked UK record industry memo sets out plans for breaking UK copyright – Boing Boing – WTF. The BPI-authored changes the effect of which was that “the security services concerns were not being met” and then goes on to talk about the irony that the Open Rights Group and the Security Services being on the same side as if it validates his standpoint

    ivi.ru — смотрите фильмы и сериалы с комфортом! – Russian answer to Hulu and iPlayer. Really nicely designed.

    When using open source makes you an enemy of the state | Technology | guardian.co.uk – interesting evidence against MPAA and RIAA of trying to incite unilateral US government actions against Indonesia because it uses open source software

    Online

    U.K. Kids Start Social Networking Way Under the Age Limit | Fast Company

    Philippines

    Sinatra Song Often Strikes Deadly Chord – NYTimes.com – My Way correlates with karaoke-related killings in the Philippines. Fascinating bit of newspaper anthropology

    Retailing

    FT.com / Comment / Analysis – China: The jailed salesman – background on the Gome business

    Security

    China PLA officer urges new Internet control agency | Reuters – People’s Liberation Army Major General Huang Yongyin ‘For national security, the Internet has already become a new battlefield without gunpowder’

    Google Case Highlights Gaps in Computer Security – NYTimes.com – interesting take on security

    Software

    The best health apps for your iPhone | The Guardian

    Wireless

    FT.com / Telecoms – Students power BlackBerry growth – I can completely understand this, I miss a proper keyboard a la the Nokia Communicator

    Motorola’s First-Quarter Forecast Hurts Shares – NYTimes.com – Android failing to save Motorola’s bacon

  • Naked official

    When I discovered the idea of the naked official I was pondering the similarity that the Chinese have with the Irish. In both cases immigration is part of their psyche. Reading an article in Sina.com, I was reminded of one particular tranche of Chinese immigration. The immigration that happened prior to, and after the handover of Hong Kong. A number of rich and middle class families chose to move to Canada and other countries. The families lived in places with large existing Chinese communities like Vancouver and the patriarch would often commute to do business back in Hong Kong. These commuters were nicknamed astronauts because they spent so much time in the air.

    Chinese space heroine

    A trend for the families of Chinese officials to conduct a similar kind of transplanted lifestyle has spawned a new term of naked official. A number of officials whose families had emigrated abroad (presumably beyond the reach of the state) were subsequently convicted of charges relating to them abusing their position. Naked officials are considered to be suspicious of preparing a bolt-hole abroad. Although moving abroad is a widely held middle class Chinese aspiration.

    More China related topics here.

    Kudos to Xinhua via Sina.com: China keeps a watchful eye on officials with family members living abroad

  • China hack

    I’ve put together a list of things I learned the hard way that I have called a China hack. Your mileage my vary. Rules change constantly in China. What would have been a China hack for me might be not possible for you. Real ID is being extended to all phone SIMs – you might not be able to get a PAYG phone SIM like I did.

    • Do get a Starbucks card if you are here for any length of time. It doesn’t charge like it does in the west and Hong Kong, instead it costs you 100 Yuan, but does provide you with vouchers and a discount on your order and they have free wi-fi in many of their coffee shops
    • Bring a SIM-free mobile phone with you. There isn’t that much of a price differentiation between legitimate phones in China and the West – bringing one from home means that you will have English language instructions
    • Do get a local PAYG SIM card. Many things in China are arranged over the phone. Having a local SIM card reduces the amount you will spend. I have a China Mobile SIM which gives me a Hong Kong number and a Chinese number. International calls on the card are from 1 yuan-a-minute
    • If you are going to buy DVDs here, don’t buy off the street. The best ones are usually found in the markets. They tend not to be openly sold on stalls. Personally, I’d advise against it, its just not worth the risk given the low prices that Amazon usually have on if you shop carefully. If you are looking for local films I can recommend DDDHouse.com – which has a wide selection of legal Chinese and Hong Kong films with English subtitles
    • Always carry a pack of tissues with you, it comes in handy if you have go to the toilet. Whilst facilities are generally clean; a number expect you to bring your own supplies. The reason for this is the army of middle aged men and women who steal toilet roll, liquid soap and anything else that isn’t screwed down
    • Do bring a laptop or an external hard drive with you to take advantage of the free (legitimate) music downloads available though Google Music China
    • In the same way that you tend to find dodgy diet Coke allegedly made in former Russian republics from small shops in London. Buying your groceries in a smaller shop in China poses similar risks. Good places to shop include Jasco and Walmart
    • Do bring index cards with you. Get a Chinese friend to write any address you are going to on the front and be sure to label the back of them. They are invaluable for working with taxi drivers

    More China related posts here.

  • China South City

    China South City is a complex just outside Pinghu, Shenzhen that allows manufacturers to showcase their wares. Think Hannover Messe but as a full-time stand. It is populated with paper salesmen, pallets of raw plastic from chemical companies, fabrics companies and factories that churn out garments and accessories.

    China South City - Shenzhen

    Many of the halls look like Smithfields market on steroids, but the newest building which opened up a couple of months ago here looks like the mother-of-all-shopping-malls lies empty.

    China South City - Shenzhen

    Is this multi-storey behemoth a white elephant? I don’t know, if they can keep it open long enough I think it will fill up with vendors over time. In addition to the real-world options for networking and customer education, China South City also provides an online marketplace for the firms similar in nature to Alibaba.

    The real-world world meeting option allows customers to find out about the tangible qualities that a web page can’t tell you with sufficient precision. How doe the leather in the handbag feel, what is the tension like in stitching between two fabric pieces. Allowing the two parties to meet in the real-world helps engender trust so that repurchases could happen online inside. I was pretty impressed by this multi-channel offering.

    ‘Ren chi’ is a Chinese phrase that my friends used to describe the deciding factor of the complex’ likely success -it roughly translates as ‘people energy’. The property developers seem to be very conscious of this so are opening up the centre to tour groups despite the fact that the centre is wholesale. The exhibition hall onsite serves as a sports centre for the locality and spare car park space has been turned into basketball courts to keep young people in the area and top-up the ‘people energy’ deficit.

  • Internet experience in China

    If you are like me you probably have some favourite platforms that you find useful for your online life. This is a list of what I found worked and didn’t work from my internet experience in China. I thought that it would be handy to know, so that if you were visiting you could put surrogate services in place to continue your online life.

    Works well

    • Flickr – both Uploadr and the site work just as well as they work at home
    • Delicious – again just works as well as you would expect it to at home
    • Google – seemed to work fine, though this may change because they haven’t been the best corporate citizen in China recently. Interestingly, typing Google.com took me directly through to the US site rather than their usual trick of geo-targeting and loading up their local country portal instead – which is a source of mild irritation when I am travelling
    • Google Analytics – dashboard worked as promised
    • Feedburner – worked as good as usual. The 120-odd drop in subscribers on the day I arrived in China I put down to my content being uninteresting as it picked right up again the following day
    • Pretty much all the major IM platforms worked well: I use Skype, Yahoo! messaging, AOL Instant Messenger, GTalk
    • LinkedIn – worked fine
    • Last.fm – worked just as well as it does back home. I scrobbled and listened to music from Shenzhen
    • Web radio – I logged on to RTE to keep up with the latest news and current affairs closer to home with no problem at all

    Patchy performance

    • Foursquare – whilst I could select Hong Kong as a city, it found it often difficult to register with a place as it struggled to match location with ‘geo-coding’. A bit disappointing to be honest with you. I did use it successfully in Shenzhen where I found free wi-fi. Your mileage may vary

    Didn’t work

    • Twitter – I found myself using instant messenger much more, to compensate for the way that I use Twitter as a communications tool. I use a multi-platform instant messaging client called Adium and had no problem with Yahoo! Instant Messenger, GTalk, Skype, .mac | MobileMe messaging, AOL Instant messenger out here so workarounds for communication are really easy
    • Friendfeed – to be honest I only looked at this because I thought I may be able to catch up on a few Twitter feeds
    • Facebook doesn’t work, but my account is a zombie account anyway with content being fed in from other places like Twitter
    • Bloglines – I would recommend downloading an RSS newsreader client and importing your OPML file to temporarily replace using Bloglines. I missed my RSS reader far more than the more banal communications of Twitter

    Internet experience in China: performance

    Generally sites can be a little slow and occasionally you need to use the refresh button. Traffic gets very slow indeed on Sunday evenings.

    The Chinese are enthusiastic adopters of the ‘net and families often log-on to watch a film or TV programming on a Sunday evening – during this time, website load times noticeably increased and I found video Skype calls worse than useless. So let’s hope that BBC iPlayer doesn’t get too popular in the UK, otherwise reality TV shows may cause the ‘net to grind to a halt. More China related content here.