Tencent first quarter profit rises 37pc on-year, driven by online games
First-quarter revenue up 40 per cent on year to 13.5 billion yuan, helped by e-commerce

Tencent, China's biggest internet firm, posted a 37.1 per cent rise in first-quarter profit, bolstered by strong growth in its online game and e-commerce segments.

"Though the first quarter is usually weaker than the second and third quarters, growth in e-commerce and Tencent's social mobile application, WeChat, is very satisfactory," said Dong Xu, an analyst with Analysys International.
Some 194.4 million people were active users of WeChat, known as Weixin in Chinese, in the period, an increase of 228.4 per cent year on year. The app is free to use.
In March, a National Development and Reform Commission official said WeChat should charge its users a fee. Tencent said WeChat would remain free.
"It is impossible for individual subscribers to pay the fee," Dong said. "That's something Tencent won't do."
She said that Tencent had enough capital to pay telecommunications carriers if they charged a fee for the service.
