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

Ann Cao

A senior NetEase executive has said the video games company will not be releasing any games with overseas studios until at least 2025, following its protracted break-up with US outfit Blizzard Entertainment.
Charles Yang Zhaoxuan, chief financial officer of China’s second-biggest video games firm, said in an earnings call on Thursday that while it is still investing in overseas studios, it will be 2025 at the earliest before any overseas game is ready for the market.
As such, the company’s profit will remain “relatively stable” in the next two to three years until its investment in overseas studios is able to generate any “positive surprises” for revenue, said Yang.
The Hangzhou-based company significantly stepped up overseas investment as it grappled with a regulatory crackdown in the domestic market that saw video game sales slump over 10 per cent in 2022, marking the first drop in at least two decades. The government has this year signalled an easing of policy, with an increase in new game licence approvals.
China’s tech regulator meets Big Tech bosses, including Didi CEO
China’s stricter controls over video gaming, which now treats game titles just as movies or new TV shows in terms of censorship, makes it hard for overseas gaming studios to crack the world’s largest mobile gaming market.
Games developed by overseas studios must find local partners to enter China and go through a content localisation process. NetEase has just ended a 14-year-old partnership with Blizzard Entertainment, a unit of US firm Activision Blizzard, after they failed to reach agreement on extending a licensing agreement for popular titles such as World of Warcraft.
“The process of [granting] licences has started to be normalised, which is very good news for us,” said William Ding Lei, founder and chief executive of NetEase, on the call. “We will continue to place equal emphasis on both the Chinese market and the global market.”
Ding said in a conference call in May that NetEase would try to increase the share of overseas revenue to between 40 and 50 per cent of the total, from the current proportion of 10 per cent, without specifying a time frame.
NetEase on Friday reported annual net revenue of 74.6 billion yuan (US$10.8 billion) from games and related value-added services – accounting for nearly 80 per cent of total revenue – up 10 per cent from last year. Total revenue also increased by 10 per cent to 94.5 billion yuan, down from the 15 per cent growth in 2021.
NetEase Games, the online games division of NetEase, has announced the opening of four overseas studios since the beginning of 2022, and it has been recruiting producers and other key personnel from rival studios.
In January, it launched Nagoshi Studio in Tokyo, which focuses on console titles and is headed by Toshihiro Nagoshi, former producer of the Yakuza series of games. That was followed by Jackalope Games, its first US studio in Austin, Texas which was announced in May, and Jar of Sparks in Seattle, a studio focusing on “narrative-driven action games “and headed by Jerry Hook, the former head of design on Halo Infinite by Microsoft’s Xbox video game brand.
China’s gamers bid farewell as Blizzard ends World of Warcraft service
NetEase unveiled Spliced earlier this month with little official information. The UK-based studio has recruited gaming alumni from hot titles such as Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty, as well as former employees from tech giants such as Google and Amazon, according to a report by gaming media GamesIndustry.biz.
Kuang Yuqing, founder of research institute Lens Company Research, said NetEase will have to rely on overseas markets for growth as China’s domestic gaming market has come under stricter regulation.
“The proportion of overseas gaming revenue is [currently] too small, so even if new games bring explosive growth … it may not be a big [enough] breakthrough,” said Kuang.
In comparison, market leader Tencent Holdings’ international gaming business accounted for nearly 30 per cent of total gaming revenue in the third quarter of 2022.
NetEase was ranked sixth among Chinese gaming companies in terms of overseas revenue in 2022, following miHoYo, Tencent, Funplus, 37Games and Lilith Games, according to data from US analytics firm Sensor Tower.
For 2023, NetEase is expected to roll out a few highly-anticipated games, including the mobile version of its PC title Justice and the overseas version of Harry Potter: Magic Awakened.
“It is normal for a game targeting the global market to spend at least two years in development before [launch],” said Zhang Yi, chief executive of iiMedia Research.
But whether or not a new game will perform well overseas is uncertain. Zhang said it depends on the content preference among gaming communities, the team’s operational capabilities, as well as the competitive status of the entire market.
“For instance, if Tencent launches a similar product [at the same time], it would put great pressure on NetEase.”


NetEase says it does not expect to launch any new video games with overseas studios until at least 2025 after Blizzard break-up

NetEase does not expect to launch any overseas titles until 2025. Photo: Shutterstock 

NetEase does not expect to launch any overseas titles until 2025. Photo: AP 

Tech

Big Tech

Business

China Business

NetEase’s investment in studios outside China is unlikely to generate any ‘positive surprises’ for revenue in the coming two or three years
Company wants to increase the share of overseas revenue to between 40 and 50 per cent of total, although no timeframe has been specified


NetEase’s investment in studios outside China is unlikely to generate any ‘positive surprises’ for revenue in the coming two or three years, said CFO Yang Zhaoxuan.


NetEase says it does not expect to launch any new video games with overseas studios until at least 2025 after Blizzard break-up

NetEase’s investment in studios outside China is unlikely to generate any ‘positive surprises’ for revenue in the coming two or three years Company wants to increase the share of overseas revenue to between 40 and 50 per cent of total, although no timeframe has been specified

NetEase’s investment in studios outside China is unlikely to generate any ‘positive surprises’ for revenue in the coming two or three years

Company wants to increase the share of overseas revenue to between 40 and 50 per cent of total, although no timeframe has been specified