The View | Jury out on internet monopolies in China
Mainland online giants dominate the local market and enjoy fat profits, yet there is little sign of a backlash or attempts to curb their power
Last week, the Europeans attached a spacecraft to a comet as it burned a path through the heavens. But who in Asia had a moment to consider this development, fixated as we have been on another spectacle - the speed at which mainland Chinese internet firms are making money on earth.
Tencent announced a 46 per cent rise in quarterly net profit last Wednesday, even as it apologised for not meeting its revenue target. Meanwhile, Alibaba racked up a record-shattering US$9.3 billion in online sales on "Singles Day".
Not only are the leading mainland internet firms generating mind-boggling levels of revenues, but they are enjoying the type of profit margins that would make a 19th-century robber baron blush.
This is in contrast to retail monopolies in the West, which often operate in a universe of low single-digit profit margins.
Their game is market share, which they maintain by using economies of scale and supplier-squeezing techniques to keep prices competitively low.
Billionaire investment philosopher Peter Thiel has averred that these types of modern-day "monopolies" are a force for good, delivering efficiency, low prices and many other benefits to consumers and society.