Insights from Hong Kong

Posts Tagged ‘Great Firewall of China’

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In Beijing, Facebook on the Radio – Not My Phone

In China, Social Media on 18 May 2012 at 10:31 AM

I am in Beijing on business and find it difficult to access my social media favourites. Twitter is erratic. Facebook is not available. Some say it’s the wireless access at the Fairmont Hotel. Others say it’s the Great Firewall of China.

Yet here I am in traffic on my way to Kreab Gavin Anderson’s offices in China World Towers. The top of the hour news is that Facebook has priced its IPO (initial public offering) shares at US$38 each. Commentators are saying it’s over-valued. There are likely to be investors from China.

Yet here on the street, few can access Facebook. Those that do use VPN (Virtual Private Networks) available privately for a small fee or in many offices.

China is renowned for blocking access for most citizens to global social media sites. In their place local equivalents have gained traction. There’s no Twitter but Weibo reigns supreme. You can’t get YouTube but you can get Youku. Across the spectrum of social media sites there’s a Chinese equivalent.

For Facebook investors, the premium paid today is done in anticipation of an increase tomorrow. Right now the revenue forecast by Facebook for Greater China is US$0.00. That’s the total estiamte of potential earnings for a nation of 1.2 billion people – most of whome are electronically connected and mad for social media.

For some the investment in Facebook today is a worthwhile bet on the day China opens to outside sites. The citizenry is wired. They already have strong social media habits. There’s an immense amount of time spent daily on similar sites. And of course the IPO has raised awareness. It was the lead story on the local radio station in the taxi today.

Facebook isn’t available “on the streets” in China today. The day it is, expect a tsunami of take-up. That may make the US$38 per share seem relatively affordable.

Until then, I’ll wait to udpate my status until I return to Hong Kong.

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#3Shots Highlights: How Social Media is Challenging Government Communications in Japan, China

In China, Public Affairs, Social Media on 24 April 2012 at 1:20 PM

Social Media is challenging the traditional forms of government communications, and nowhere is that more apparent than in Japan and China. In the aftermath of the 3/11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident in Japan the government started communicating in English across platforms like Twitter. Social media was needed to ensure audiences worldwide were abreast of the latest safety information. One year on it’s still vital as Japan seeks to re-build and return to normalcy.

In China the high-profile collapse of Bo Xilai has led to unprecedented censorship moves to try to staunch rumours of political unrest and a possible coup. Yet despite the best efforts of censors more than one million updates have been posted from China on sites like Sina Weibo and Twitter. There are creative ways around the blockades.

These were the two examples used to portray the fast-evolving nature of social media in government communications. Last night 30+ communications, business and social media leaders gathered at Azure Restaurant on the top of LKF Hotel in Central, Hong Kong. They contributed to the discussion led by Jonathan Kushner and Walter Jennings, both of Kreab Gavin Anderson – the sponsor for the night’s event.

In China, the challenges are only going to become more complex. Mobile internet is spreading rapidly and the major telecommunications carriers are investing US$11 billion in China over the next three years. Expected uptake of 4G technology means faster uploads of richer content – like photos and videos – that aren’t as easy to “word search” and censor. What does this mean for the “Great Firewall of China”? And if there is free-flowing information what does that mean politically in the long-term?

These were a few of the issues addressed by the gathering. For more information and to sign up for notices on our next event, please visit Meet Up: http://www.meetup.com/3Shots/

You can follow the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag #3Shots.

For a copy of the presentation from last night, click here: #3Shots of Social Media – Challenges for Japan, China – Social Media – KGA

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