bodyType

customContents

entityId

printArticlePageQuery

filter

article

body

urlAlias

articleSectionsContent

articleSeoArticle

articleSourceHeaderArticle

contentSchemaRenderContent

contentSubHeadlineContent

contentHeadlineContent

mainImagePrintArticleArticle

authorBlockPrintArticleArticle

contentSponsorTagContent

articlePianoPaywallContent

scmpYoutubeContent

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

query printArticlePageQuery(
  $entityId: String!
  $customContents: [CustomContentInput]
  $bodyType: BodyFormatTypeEnum
) {
  article(filter: {entityId: $entityId}) {
    entityId
    body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
      json
    }
    urlAlias
    ...articleSectionsContent
    ...articleSeoArticle_3o8td4
    ...articleSourceHeaderArticle
    ...contentSchemaRenderContent
    ...contentSubHeadlineContent
    ...contentHeadlineContent
    ...mainImagePrintArticleArticle
    ...authorBlockPrintArticleArticle
    ...contentSponsorTagContent
    ...articlePianoPaywallContent
    ...scmpYoutubeContent
    ...hooksTrackPageViewArticle
    id
  }
}

fragment articlePianoPaywallContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksPaywallPromiseContent
}

fragment articleSectionsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      ...helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection
      ...entityLink
      name
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment articleSeoArticle_3o8td4 on Article {
  ...hooksArticleSeoArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersGetArticleTypeArticle
  entityId
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
  summary {
    text
  }
  subHeadline {
    text
  }
  body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
    text
  }
  keywords
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  topics {
    name
    entityId
    id
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  images {
    style(filter: {style: "768x768"}) {
      url
    }
  }
  readingTime
}

fragment articleSourceHeaderArticle on Article {
  urlAlias
  ...entityLink
}

fragment authorBlockPrintArticleArticle on Article {
  ...defaultArticleDateContent
  ...authorNamesArticle
}

fragment authorNameAuthor on Author {
  ...entityLink
  name
  entityUuid
}

fragment authorNamesArticle on Article {
  authorLocations
  authors {
    entityId
    location
    ...authorNameAuthor
    id
  }
}

fragment blockquoteQuoteContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment contentHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  socialHeadline
  ...contentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
}

fragment contentNewsletterWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
    id
  }
  sections {
    value {
      relatedNewsletters {
        ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
        id
      }
      id
    }
  }
  ... on Article {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment contentSchemaRenderContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...blockquoteQuoteContent
  ...imageContent
  ...inlineWidgetContent
  ...photoGalleryWidgetContent
  ...scmpYoutubeContent
}

fragment contentShareWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  shortUrl
  socialHeadline
  headline
}

fragment contentSponsorTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentSubHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  subHeadline {
    json
  }
  summary {
    json
  }
  ...contentSchemaRenderContent
}

fragment defaultArticleDateContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksArticleDateUtilsContent
}

fragment entityLink on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  __typename
  entityId
  entityUuid
  urlAlias
  urlRedirect {
    toUrl
    id
  }
  application {
    entityId
    id
  }
  ... on Section {
    fullSectionPath {
      entityId
      id
    }
    parentSection
  }
  ...helpersAppBarVariantBase
  ...helpersApplicationBase
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersAppBarVariantBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsLiveArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...helpersSectionContent
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersApplicationBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
}

fragment helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection on Section {
  name
}

fragment helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle on Article {
  entityId
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  disableOffPlatformContent
  sponsorType
  published
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment helpersCheckIsLiveArticle on Article {
  flattenTypeIds
  liveArticle {
    status
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    paywallTypes {
      entityUuid
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsStyleArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersGetArticleTypeArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        entityId
        id
      }
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter on Newsletter {
  entityId
  name
  alternativeName
  description {
    text
  }
  summary {
    text
  }
  homepageDescription {
    text
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle on Article {
  authors {
    types
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersStyleSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersUseContentSponsorContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    sponsor {
      ...sponsorTagSponsor
      name
      type
      id
    }
    id
  }
  ... on Article {
    sponsorType
  }
  ...helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent
}

fragment hooksArticleDateUtilsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  createdDate
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
}

fragment hooksArticleSeoArticle on Article {
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle
  entityId
  headline
  socialHeadline
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
  images {
    generic_og: style(filter: {style: "og_image_scmp_generic"}) {
      url
    }
    styles(filter: {styles: ["og_image_posties_article", "og_postmag", "og_image_style", "og_image_scmp_analysis", "og_image_scmp_explainer", "og_image_scmp_editorial", "og_image_scmp_fact_check", "og_image_scmp_debate", "og_image_scmp_live", "og_image_scmp_obituary", "og_image_scmp_opinion", "og_image_scmp_review", "og_image_scmp_series", "og_image_scmp_generic"]}) {
      url
      style
    }
    type
  }
  urlAlias
}

fragment hooksContentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        name
        entityId
        description {
          text
        }
        id
      }
    }
    ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  }
  flag
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  ...hooksContentHelperContent
}

fragment hooksContentHelperContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle
  ...helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle
  ...helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle
  flag
}

fragment hooksPaywallPromiseContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment hooksTrackPageViewArticle on Article {
  entityId
  publishedDate
  headline
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  entityUuid
}

fragment imageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  ...checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent
}

fragment inlineWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentNewsletterWidgetContent
}

fragment mainImagePrintArticleArticle on Article {
  images {
    title
    url
    isSlideshow
    size_652x446: style(filter: {style: "652x446"}) {
      url
    }
  }
}

fragment photoGalleryDialogContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment photoGalleryWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...photoGalleryDialogContent
}

fragment scmpYoutubeContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  publishedDate
}

fragment sponsorTagSponsor on Sponsor {
  name
  type
  images {
    url
  }
}


sections

types

disableOffPlatformContent

sponsorType

published

headline

socialHeadline

authors

images

publishedDate

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

keywords

topics

readingTime

authorLocations

entityUuid

Iris Deng

As executives from Tencent Holdings fielded questions from investors and analysts in its earnings call on Wednesday evening, one query appeared to have hit a nerve.
When chief strategy officer James Mitchell was asked whether Tencent might spin off some of its businesses, so as to “not seem so large in the eyes of your regulators”, he quickly shifted the question to founder and chief executive Pony Ma Huateng.
Before Ma had the chance to say anything, however, president Martin Lau Chi-ping spoke up, saying that any talks of breaking up Tencent are “highly speculative” and “not something that we consider at this point in time”.
Behind the delicate question are growing concerns among investors that the Chinese government may want to split up the 24-year-old social media and video gaming giant, known for occupying “half of the mountains and rivers” of China’s internet landscape through its sprawling stakes in hundreds of internet firms, including on-demand service provider Meituan, the country’s second largest short-video platform Kuaishou Technology and e-commerce company Pinduoduo.
Tencent quarterly profit surges 60 per cent on back of one-off gain from JD.com deal
Tencent’s extensive empire – which covers finance, social media, video gaming, e-commerce, cloud computing, streaming video and news – has helped it become one of the most indispensable service providers for China’s 1 billion internet users, as well as the most valuable publicly-listed Chinese tech company. Its leading position has now become a source of anxiety as Beijing tries to limit the “irrational expansion of capital”.
After Reuters earlier this month published an opinion piece arguing that a break-up of Tencent is “a radical but simple way” to address mounting regulatory hurdles, a sell-off of the internet giant’s shares in Hong Kong ensued, even though there was no evidence to suggest that a carve-up is on the way.
To date, neither the Chinese government or any state media outlets have made any comments on breaking up Tencent. While China’s antitrust regulator had punished the company for failing to report a number of merger deals, Tencent was slapped with a fine of 500,000 yuan (US$77,243) for each those transactions, rather than being ordered to divest the acquired stakes.
Analysts said regulatory headwinds will continue to cast a shadow over Tencent’s prospects. And there is no indication that the intensity of government scrutiny is likely to change, said Mio Kato, founder of LightStream Research.
Tencent’s latest annual financial results showed a sharp slowdown in revenue and profit. The company’s revenue in the fourth quarter rose just 8 per cent from a year earlier, marking its slowest growth ever. Profit surged 60 per cent, thanks to a one-off windfall from offloading stakes in e-commerce platform JD.com.
For the whole of last year, Tencent’s profit advanced 41 per cent from 2020, while revenue increased 16.2 per cent, the slowest annual top-line growth since the company’s listing in 2004.

Meanwhile, Tencent’s stock has lost half of its value from its peak in February last year, when the company was on track to become the first Asian firm to have a market capitalisation of over US$1 trillion.
The downturn happened in tandem with the company’s efforts to comply with China’s increasingly stringent regulatory requirements and align its business with the state’s priorities.
To support the country’s “common prosperity” push, Tencent last year earmarked 100 billion yuan for charity projects. To comply with Beijing’s antitrust drive, the company gave up its exclusive music streaming rights. To meet government data security requirements, the company modified its popular app WeChat, known locally as Weixin, to separate domestic user data from those belonging to overseas users.
Tencent founder Ma has kept an extremely low profile and pledged allegiance to Beijing. After internet regulators, including the powerful Cyberspace Administration of China, convened a meeting of internet executives to lecture them on how to behave, Ma organised a study session and said he felt “warmth and encouragement”, according to a statement from the regulator in January. Ma also said Tencent would continue to “respond to the calls of the state and the times”.
Despite Tencent’s compliance efforts and pledge of loyalty, speculation continues on whether the company could face more scrutiny from Beijing.
One segment that is facing a possible restructure is Tencent’s financial technology business.


Company president Lau, who has been the chief architect of Tencent’s strategic investment deals for years, said during Wednesday’s conference call that the company was working closely with regulators to explore the possibility of setting up a financial holding company, and a final solution could benefit the company in the long run. Fintech, along with corporate services, generated 172 billion yuan in revenue for Tencent last year, accounting for 30 per cent of the company’s total revenue – nearly matching video gaming’s contribution.
Still, there are signs that China’s regulatory storm is ebbing. A conference chaired by Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He last week stated that the country’s regulation over Big Tech would be “transparent and predictable”, in an apparent move to stop a stock-price rout of Chinese companies listed in New York and Hong Kong.
Ivan Su, an equity analyst at Morningstar, said that this year’s regulatory environment would improve for China’s tech sector. “There could be small changes in the existing frameworks, but I don’t expect any new announcements of material tightening," he said.
Tencent has also proved its resilience in the face of intense government scrutiny. Even as Chinese authorities have suspended issuance of new video game licences since last summer, and enforced a three-hour-per-week online play time limit for minors, Tencent’s video gaming revenue in China rose 6 per cent last year, while overseas gaming revenue rose 31 per cent, thanks to the popularity of titles such as PUBG Mobile.
Tencent’s dominant status in video gaming and social media will continue to be the company’s biggest advantage in an increasingly competitive marketplace, because its domestic gaming and advertising businesses “should remain extremely large and profitable businesses in an absolute sense”, Kato at LightStream said.
It remains to be seen whether a break-up would materialise. For now, Tencent’s Lau said the focus is to ensure the strength of the company. “The most important thing is [that] each one of the businesses has to be optimised for its own service and for its own sustainable and healthy growth," he said.


Tencent plays down talks of break-up despite regulatory risks, slowest ever quarterly revenue growth

Tencent denies that it is considering to split up the company amid an increasingly challenging regulatory environment. Photo: Bloomberg

Tencent president Martin Lau Chi-ping (left) and CEO Pony Ma Huateng at the announcement of Tencent’s 2017 fourth-quarter and annual earning results on March 21, 2018. Photo: Winson Wong

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Concerns are rising among investors that the Chinese government may want to split up internet giant Tencent 
Analysts say regulatory headwinds will continue to cast a shadow over Tencent’s prospects, despite efforts to meet government requirements


Analysts say regulatory headwinds will continue to cast a shadow over Tencent’s prospects, despite efforts to meet the Chinese government requirements.


Tencent plays down talks of break-up despite regulatory risks, slowest ever quarterly revenue growth

Concerns are rising among investors that the Chinese government may want to split up internet giant Tencent Analysts say regulatory headwinds will continue to cast a shadow over Tencent’s prospects, despite efforts to meet government requirements

Concerns are rising among investors that the Chinese government may want to split up internet giant Tencent

Analysts say regulatory headwinds will continue to cast a shadow over Tencent’s prospects, despite efforts to meet government requirements