Hey everybody,
I hope you enjoyed the weekend and are ready to roll this week!
Despite the National Golden Week holiday in China, there has been a lot of action. Well, at least on the internet.
Did you know that: If there are national holidays in China (like the Golden Week) people then work Saturdays or even the whole weekends. And I mean everybody. What do you think about that? Are they onto something here? Let me know, would love to hear your thoughts.
What’s (also) included in this issue?
- You'll learn that Travis Kalanick’s (founder of Uber) tolerance to alcohol is just “so-so.”
- Why U.S. tech companies find it hard to recruit talent in China.
- Shenzhen is following the footsteps of Silicon Valley, at least when it comes to the property prices.
- Interview with Peter Vesterbacka (Slush, ex-Rovio = Angry Birds).
Thank you for your continuous support!
Reach out to me on Twitter (@jsmejky). Anytime. :-)
Jan
1) Chinese top talent refuses to work for U.S. tech unicorns as it might kill their careers (@wsj)
“Airbnb, among the highest-valued startups in the world, said over a year ago that it had brought on new investors in China in part to help it recruit a chief executive for its local operations. But the room-sharing company is still searching, according to people familiar with the situation.”
2) Everyone talks about property prices in Shenzhen, and it seems they have a very good reason for that (@bloomberg)
“A drop of 30 percent in housing prices could cause 4 percent of total loans worth 4.1 trillion yuan ($615 billion) to sour. Such a drop could trigger 4 trillion yuan in delinquencies. In Shenzhen alone home prices rose 60 percent in a year.”
3) Even Chinese VC funds are investing in European soccer to make president Xi Jinping happy (@bloomberg)
“Tech Pro sees itself as aligned with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s campaign to turn his nation into a soccer super power. In a statement dated September 23, the company said the club has sufficient funding and that Tech Pro is ready to give additional support if needed.”
4) Netflix CEO is not that bullish on China (@reuters)
“Disney, who is very good in China, had their movie service shut down. Apple, who is very good in China, had their movie service closed down. It doesn’t look good.”
5) Fascinating story behind the ride-hailing battle between Uber and Didi in China (Bloomberg)
“After they tossed around ideas about companies in education, restaurant reviews, even interior decorating, a foreign ride-hailing startup that was rapidly raising money and planning to spread around the world captured their attention. It wasn’t Uber; it was Hailo — a U.K. company that worked with London’s famous black cabs, driven by licensed hackney drivers. Cheng figured the Hailo model could be replicated in China.”
6) Shanghai is the most expensive city in the region (@wsj)
“Shanghai is more expensive than any other city in the region for all goods and services except for legal fees and golf memberships, and in many cases, the city is twice as expensive as other cities.”
7) China plans to roll out the 5G network (@scmp)
“China, with the world’s largest 4G market at 1.3 billion users at the end of 2015, is the only country with sufficient scale to “make or break” a new global 5G standard, something industry leaders say is necessary to optimise the efficiency of the technology when it becomes widely used.”
8) Wal-Mart hopes for a better future in China (@scmp)
“Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, is trying to improve its business in China, which is lucrative but increasingly challenging. In China, Wal-Mart faces a business that has been slow and uneven. It operates more than 400 stores despite entering the country 20 years ago. It sees bolstering its online business as the future in China.”
9) Talking about Slush, Entrepreneurship & China w/ Peter Vesterbacka (Founder of Slush, ex-CEO & ex-CMO of Rovio)
“If you want to succeed in China, you have to focus on finding the right partner and be ready to give up more than (just) a 50% of the company.”
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