https://www.scmp.com/rss/327844/feed Zheping is a technology reporter covering cryptocurrency, blockchain and gaming for the South China Morning Post. He is a contributor to Inkstone. Previously he wrote about China for Quartz. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com In Hangzhou, police officers are notified of major car accidents soon after they happen, traffic lights automatically adjust to changes in the volume of vehicles on the road and, in emergencies, fire trucks and ambulances are not stopped by a single red light until they arrive at the scene. The city in eastern China’s Zhejiang province is one of the country’s major tech hubs. Its smart infrastructure powers the City Brain project, a cloud computing and AI-driven urban traffic-management system.... https://www.scmp.com/tech/how-5g-will-unlock-industrial-internet-driving-another-dimension-mobile-connectivity/article/3008713?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/how-5g-will-unlock-industrial-internet-driving-another-dimension-mobile-connectivity/article/3008713?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 May 2019 08:54:49 +0000 This is the second in a series of articles analysing the impact of 5G mobile technology on people’s everyday lives. In Hangzhou, capital of eastern China’s Zhejiang province and one of the country’s major technology hubs, evidence of the city’s smart infrastructure can be gleaned from how its public services function. Police officers are notified of major car accidents soon after they happen, traffic lights automatically adjust to changes in the volume of vehicles on the road, and in... https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3008594/how-5g-will-unlock-industrial-internet-driving-another-dimension?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3008594/how-5g-will-unlock-industrial-internet-driving-another-dimension?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 May 2019 14:30:06 +0000 After a nearly nine-month freeze on new video games, Chinese authorities on Monday began accepting new applications for publishing games in the country again – with strings attached. China has stepped up its regulation of an industry that it considers harmful to the country’s young people, a move that has hurt companies like Tencent, China’s biggest gaming company. The rules will be closely studied (and followed) by any developer who wants a piece of the world’s biggest gaming market. They also... https://www.scmp.com/tech/chinas-new-rules-video-games-no-blood-dead-bodies-or-mahjong/article/3007275?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/chinas-new-rules-video-games-no-blood-dead-bodies-or-mahjong/article/3007275?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Apr 2019 10:40:50 +0000 Douyu International Holdings Limited, China’s biggest gaming-focused live streaming platform, has filed to go public in the US as it seeks to fund efforts to gain more eyeballs from the country’s younger generation. The Tencent Holdings-backed company on Monday filed for an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, with plans to raise up to US$500 million to invest in e-sports content, R&D, and marketing, according to its prospectus. The filing comes almost a year after its closest... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3007293/douyu-files-us-ipo-how-chinas-answer-twitch-really-not-us-game?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3007293/douyu-files-us-ipo-how-chinas-answer-twitch-really-not-us-game?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Apr 2019 10:00:12 +0000 The Chinese government has ended its long freeze on new video games but it is not all good news for the world’s biggest gaming market. China’s top content regulator began taking new applications for publishing online games in the country on Monday, after it introduced changes to the approval process last week, according to research firm Niko Partners.  The move signals the end of China’s gaming freeze. The State Administration of Press and Publications (SAPP) suspended the licensing process for... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/3007177/no-mahjong-corpses-or-back-stabbing-concubines-all-you-need-know-about?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/3007177/no-mahjong-corpses-or-back-stabbing-concubines-all-you-need-know-about?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Apr 2019 22:30:06 +0000 Governments around the world are scrambling to figure out how to deal with harmful content online, whatever they think it is. The United Kingdom seeks to enforce a mandatory age check for online pornography. Singapore has proposed laws targeting the spread of “fake news.” New Australian legislation punishes social media companies if they fail to take down violent content quickly. While different countries have different things in mind when it comes to what is bad, China’s sophisticated... https://www.scmp.com/tech/what-china-can-teach-world-about-controlling-internet/article/3006687?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/what-china-can-teach-world-about-controlling-internet/article/3006687?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Apr 2019 09:53:59 +0000 While the West struggles to get to grips with internet regulation, China already has a sophisticated – some would say repressive – content control system in place. Governments around the world are scrambling to hold internet companies accountable for what is published on their platforms amid renewed fears about the spread of harmful content on social media. Last month Facebook enabled an Australian gunman to live stream a mass shooting that left 50 people dead in New Zealand. Though the account... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3006425/how-west-may-turn-china-some-unlikely-tips-internet-regulation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3006425/how-west-may-turn-china-some-unlikely-tips-internet-regulation?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Apr 2019 22:00:08 +0000 The world’s biggest gaming market is finally getting a taste of Pokémon Go and CryptoKitties. Not the original versions but a new title that merges concepts underlying the two games into one, produced by Chinese gaming giant Tencent. The Shenzhen-based company on Thursday launched its long anticipated augmented reality (AR) game called Let’s Hunt Monsters, where users can cruise around streets and catch hundreds of virtual monsters, while rearing and trading millions of digital kittens stored on... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3005911/tencent-launches-new-blockchain-game-merging-concepts-behind?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3005911/tencent-launches-new-blockchain-game-merging-concepts-behind?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Apr 2019 03:45:04 +0000 Alibaba founder Jack Ma has come out as a vocal supporter of the gruelling working hours commonplace in China’s tech and internet industry, as online protests against the so-called 996 schedule heat up. The 996 schedule – which means working 9am to 9pm, six days a week – is “a huge blessing that many companies and employees do not have the opportunity to have,” Ma said in an internal event on Thursday, according to a transcript published on Alibaba’s official WeChat account. “If you do not do... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3005946/alibabas-jack-ma-defends-chinas-996-schedule-tech-workers-protest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3005946/alibabas-jack-ma-defends-chinas-996-schedule-tech-workers-protest?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Apr 2019 10:01:33 +0000 China’s top economic planning body has proposed new rules that would see the closure of all local cryptocurrency mining facilities if enacted – a move that would potentially end the country’s dominance in the energy-hungry, yet lucrative industry. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) on Monday unveiled amendments to its guidance for adjustments to the nation’s industrial structure, including categories that are encouraged, restricted and eliminated. Cryptocurrency mining was... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3005334/china-home-worlds-biggest-cryptocurrency-mining-farms-now-wants-ban?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3005334/china-home-worlds-biggest-cryptocurrency-mining-farms-now-wants-ban?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Apr 2019 05:03:50 +0000 Last August, Wang Sicong showed up on his live streaming network Panda TV to play a game of League of Legends for his e-sports team. The flamboyant son of Wang Jianlin, one of China's richest men, did not do great, but his team won. The professional match ended up getting a peak of 50 million concurrent viewers, according to Panda, setting a record for the platform. To give some context, the record for an individual’s live stream on US-based Twitch was 628,000 concurrent viewers, when Fortnite... https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3005254/pandas-demise-makes-way-gaming-giant-tencent-dominate-live-streaming?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3005254/pandas-demise-makes-way-gaming-giant-tencent-dominate-live-streaming?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Apr 2019 23:00:15 +0000 It looks like Snapchat is the latest Western app to take a leaf out of WeChat’s playbook. Los Angeles-based Snap Inc. on Thursday rolled out its Snap Games platform that lets users play real-time, multiplayer games inside the company’s flagship messaging app. Without downloads or installations, players can access these games through Snapchat’s chat feature and invite their friends to join. Snap Games will be competing against similar in-app gaming platforms like Facebook’s Instant Games and... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3004797/snapchats-new-app-gaming-platform-will-sound-familiar-wechat-users?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3004797/snapchats-new-app-gaming-platform-will-sound-familiar-wechat-users?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Apr 2019 22:00:11 +0000 China’s government has recognised over two dozen new jobs as official professions, signalling the country’s intent to develop talent in a wide range of tech sectors from artificial intelligence (AI) to the Internet of Things to e-sports. The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security on Wednesday published a list of 13 new job titles that include professional gamers, drone pilots, robotics operators and software engineers in areas like AI, the Internet of Things (IoT), big data and cloud... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3004688/china-recognises-13-new-tech-jobs-including-ai-developers-e-sports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3004688/china-recognises-13-new-tech-jobs-including-ai-developers-e-sports?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Apr 2019 22:30:08 +0000 It looks like China’s government has crossed poker and mahjong games off the approvals list as regulators this week gave the green light to another batch of new video games after a nine-month halt last year, signalling stricter controls over online gambling. In the first quarter this year, Chinese censors approved the launch of 795 domestic video games, none of which were from the poker and mahjong genre. That compares to 962 approved poker games, or nearly 50 per cent of the total, in the same... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3004482/china-calls-time-poker-and-mahjong-video-game-approvals-continue?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3004482/china-calls-time-poker-and-mahjong-video-game-approvals-continue?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Apr 2019 22:00:11 +0000 China’s top content regulator has approved a fresh batch of online video games based on foreign intellectual property (IP), the government’s first such move in more than a year after it ended a nine-month licensing freeze. The State Administration of Press and Publications (SAPP) on Tuesday published a list of 30 newly licensed foreign online games. This included titles submitted by China’s three biggest video gaming companies – Tencent Holdings, NetEase and Perfect World. Among the new titles... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3004367/game-thrones-video-game-coming-china-regulator-approves-first-foreign?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3004367/game-thrones-video-game-coming-china-regulator-approves-first-foreign?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Apr 2019 21:00:05 +0000 Last year was a lean year for China’s gaming industry because of a freeze on approvals of new titles. The impact was especially pronounced for smaller developers like Feiyu Technology. The Hong Kong-listed games developer saw its revenue plunge 37 per cent to 83.3 million yuan (US$12.4 million) last year, the lowest level since its initial public offering four years ago, according to its filing to the stock exchange. The company made a net loss of 107.5 million yuan. China’s top content... https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/3004253/chinas-gaming-freeze-2018-hits-small-time-developers-hard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/3004253/chinas-gaming-freeze-2018-hits-small-time-developers-hard?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Apr 2019 04:20:49 +0000 Beijing Kunlun Technology, the Chinese owner of Grindr, says it has yet to reach any agreement with US authorities in response to reports that the firm has been forced to sell the gay dating app amid concerns that its ownership constitutes a national security risk. Kunlun is currently communicating with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), a federal panel focused on national security, regarding its ownership of Grindr but so far the two sides have not reached a deal, the... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3004096/grindrs-chinese-owner-says-no-deal-us-yet-over-sale-response?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3004096/grindrs-chinese-owner-says-no-deal-us-yet-over-sale-response?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Apr 2019 04:54:10 +0000 Tan Min-Liang hates Tim Cook and Jack Dorsey. Or more precisely, the kind of early-morning routine that the CEOs of Apple and Twitter favour: gym workouts, yoga, runs and meditation performed when most people are still in bed. “A lot of tech CEOs wake up at 5 o’clock in the morning, they meditate, and then they go for a run,” Tan, 42, co-founder and chief executive of gaming hardware maker Razer, said in a recent mid-morning interview. “I hate all those CEOs. I cannot do that.” Tan wakes up at... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/3004017/razer-ceo-tan-min-liang-has-no-life-beyond-gaming-so-we-challenged-him?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/3004017/razer-ceo-tan-min-liang-has-no-life-beyond-gaming-so-we-challenged-him?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Mar 2019 22:00:15 +0000 Zheping Huang Zheping Huang The world’s biggest cryptocurrency mining company is going through tough times. But a code change in bitcoin might come to the rescue, again. Beijing-based Bitmain Technologies on Tuesday called off its plan to go public in Hong Kong after its application lapsed after six months. The failure of what was billed as potentially the world’s largest crypto-related IPO adds to news of retrenchments. A new CEO has been appointed to replace the two main founders, who had previously shared the role. Hope... https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3003517/inside-rise-and-fall-and-rise-crypto-mining-giant-bitmain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3003517/inside-rise-and-fall-and-rise-crypto-mining-giant-bitmain?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Mar 2019 10:23:42 +0000 Bitmain Technologies, the world’s biggest producer of bitcoin mining rigs, has given up on its plan to go public in Hong Kong, after the company struggled through mass lay-offs and a leadership reshuffle amid a prolonged bear market in cryptocurrencies. The Beijing-based company on Tuesday published a statement acknowledging that its IPO application – filed in Hong Kong on September 26 – had reached its six-month expiration date. “We will restart the listing application work at an appropriate... https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3003278/cryptocurrency-giant-bitmain-gives-hong-kong-ipo-amid-lay-offs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/3003278/cryptocurrency-giant-bitmain-gives-hong-kong-ipo-amid-lay-offs?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Mar 2019 04:43:10 +0000 He is so focused on keeping his start-up alive that he can't sleep at night. She was asked in an interview if she would be willing to break up with her boyfriend for the job. A young couple wants their own family but has no energy for sex after work. These are some of the struggles faced by the hundreds of thousands of young workers in China’s tech industry. They are people like Yu Haoran, a 26-year-old computer science major, who in 2014 founded Jisuanke, a start-up in Beijing’s hi-tech... https://www.scmp.com/tech/beijings-tech-workers-struggle-balance-work-and-life/article/3002661?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/beijings-tech-workers-struggle-balance-work-and-life/article/3002661?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Mar 2019 08:58:20 +0000 He is so focused on keeping his start-up alive that he can't sleep at night. She was asked in an interview if she would be willing to break up with her boyfriend for the job. A young couple want their own family but have no energy for sex after work. These are some of the struggles faced by the hundreds of thousands of young workers in China’s tech industry like Yu Haoran, a 26-year-old computer science major, who in 2014 founded Jisuanke, a start-up in Beijing’s hi-tech Zhongguancun district to... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3002533/no-sleep-no-sex-no-life-tech-workers-chinas-silicon-valley-face?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3002533/no-sleep-no-sex-no-life-tech-workers-chinas-silicon-valley-face?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Mar 2019 14:30:07 +0000 China’s No. 2 gaming company NetEase has been cleared for the full launch of a new battle royale game for mobile in the country, while its bigger rival Tencent Holdings is still waiting for permission to monetise the genre’s biggest hits, PlayerUnknown’s BattleGround and Fortnite. What makes things worse for the Fortnite publisher in China is that the NetEase game is almost identical to Fortnite. China’s top content regulator on Friday approved a new batch of 95 video games for domestic launch,... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2189487/chinas-netease-cleared-launch-another-battle-royale-clone-mobile-while?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2189487/chinas-netease-cleared-launch-another-battle-royale-clone-mobile-while?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Mar 2019 05:35:09 +0000 China’s once high-flying game streaming platform Panda TV has announced it will end its service after the company failed to raise fresh funds to keep operations going in a cash-intensive business. Founded in 2015 by Wang Sicong, an entrepreneur and son of Chinese tycoon Wang Jianlin, Shanghai-based Panda TV said in a posting on microblogging site Weibo on Friday that it has started a “wandering plan,” asking “engineers to gradually cut off the connection with the mother star,” an apparent... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2189218/chinas-game-streaming-site-panda-tv-confirms-it-will-end-service-amid-cash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2189218/chinas-game-streaming-site-panda-tv-confirms-it-will-end-service-amid-cash?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Mar 2019 09:25:28 +0000 A database of hundreds of millions of chat logs of Chinese social media users has been leaked online, revealing that private records like user photos and identity card numbers were gathered by a government-linked surveillance program, a researcher has found. Victor Gevers, a cybersecurity researcher with the non-profit GDI Foundation, shared his findings on Twitter on Monday. The surveillance network, he said, tracks about 364 million online profiles on a daily basis and retrieves sensitive... https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2188662/data-leak-exposes-364-million-chinese-social-media-profiles-tracked?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2188662/data-leak-exposes-364-million-chinese-social-media-profiles-tracked?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 Mar 2019 04:34:58 +0000 A long-waited promotion can make you feel on top of the world and an unexpected lay-off can take you to rock bottom. In China’s rapidly changing tech scene, this career roller-coaster can be ridden in days – not months or years. One ex-employee from Chinese internet major NetEase was promised a promotion ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday after several years at the Hangzhou-based company. But soon after she returned from the seven-day national holiday, NetEase laid her off as part of a... https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2188337/blockbuster-bonuses-pink-slips-chinas-tech-industry-nurses-hangover?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2188337/blockbuster-bonuses-pink-slips-chinas-tech-industry-nurses-hangover?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 Mar 2019 23:01:16 +0000 A jobless man in China has for years turned a touch screen payphone into his personal computer, spending most of his nights freeloading off the internet for novels, movies and video games. A video of the man browsing webpages at the public phone booth in Chongqing became popular on Chinese social media in recent days, prompting the booth’s owner, China Telecom, to look into the situation. In the video, the man in a black hoodie – who claimed to be a former mechanical worker – demonstrated how to... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2187950/jobless-man-china-found-have-hacked-public-phone-booth-years-accessing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2187950/jobless-man-china-found-have-hacked-public-phone-booth-years-accessing?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Feb 2019 23:01:18 +0000 When it comes to politics, Chinese censors will not appreciate even the slightest out-of-the box thinking by content creators. A Taiwanese games maker just learned that lesson the hard way. Indie studio Red Candle saw its hit horror game Devotion disappear from China’s internet over the past weekend, after players reported a hidden in-game message linking Chinese president Xi Jinping to Winnie the Pooh. The comparison originated from internet memes that are banned in China. Red Candle issued an... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2187763/taiwan-tibet-tiananmen-how-get-your-video-game-banned-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2187763/taiwan-tibet-tiananmen-how-get-your-video-game-banned-china?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Feb 2019 22:02:12 +0000 In the horror game Devotion, a Taiwanese cult follower kills his daughter with venomous snakes. In real life, the game’s developers seem to have killed their instant hit in China with Winnie the Pooh. Released February 19 on PC games distribution platform Steam, Devotion received a positive rating from 95% of the more than 4,000 gamers who posted reviews in the first four days. At one point the indie title, from Taiwan-based studio Red Candle, was the most popular game on Chinese streaming... https://www.scmp.com/tech/taiwanese-horror-game-devotion-pulled-steam-store-after-chinese-users-discover-xi-jinping-meme/article/3000943?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/taiwanese-horror-game-devotion-pulled-steam-store-after-chinese-users-discover-xi-jinping-meme/article/3000943?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Feb 2019 09:25:21 +0000 In the horror game Devotion, a Taiwanese cult follower kills his daughter with venomous snakes. In real life, the game's developers seem to have killed their instant hit in China with Winnie the Pooh. Released February 19 on PC games distribution platform Steam, Devotion received a positive rating from 95 per cent of the more than 4,000 gamers that posted reviews in the first four days. At one point the indie title from Taiwan-based studio Red Candle was the most popular game on Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/2187566/hit-taiwanese-horror-game-devotion-banned-china-after-hidden-message?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/2187566/hit-taiwanese-horror-game-devotion-banned-china-after-hidden-message?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Feb 2019 06:41:25 +0000 It is not spring yet in the world’s biggest gaming market. China’s top media regulator has stopped accepting new applications for game licences as it struggles through a backlog of thousands of titles from a previous nine-month hiatus, one industry source and a state-run news outlet said this week. Game publishers can still file applications to their respective provincial regulators but they are no longer passing them on to the State Administration of Press and Publications (SAPP) in Beijing,... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2187232/pubg-fortnite-game-thrones-these-popular-video-games-still-need-licences?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2187232/pubg-fortnite-game-thrones-these-popular-video-games-still-need-licences?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Feb 2019 22:02:40 +0000 China’s State Administration of Press and Publications (SAPP) has called a halt on new video game approval submissions to clear a backlog created by an earlier nine-month hiatus, according to a gaming company executive with knowledge of the matter. There is no confirmed date as to when the top video games regulator will restart accepting submissions from its local bureaus, according to the person, who was informed by the local regulator this week and asked not to be named as the information is... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/2186888/chinas-gaming-regulator-said-call-halt-new-approval-submissions-clear?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/2186888/chinas-gaming-regulator-said-call-halt-new-approval-submissions-clear?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Feb 2019 02:44:14 +0000 Douyin, the viral short video app run by ByteDance, has launched its first mini game, built on top of a new feature allowing users to play games inside the app without having to download them separately. The move will intensify social media rivalry between ByteDance and Tencent Holdings, China’s biggest games publisher, as mini games are added to apps in the battle to win over a bigger share of the country’s mercurial millennials. Mini games were pioneered by Tencent’s WeChat, China’s answer to... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2186764/rivalry-between-chinese-social-media-giants-intensifies-bytedances?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2186764/rivalry-between-chinese-social-media-giants-intensifies-bytedances?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Feb 2019 22:04:28 +0000 Alibaba Group Holding said its DingTalk open technology platform is used to create thousands of apps, in response to a Reuters report about its role in a popular Chinese government propaganda app. Reuters reported on Monday that Xuexi Qiangguo, translated as “Study powerful country” in Mandarin, was developed and maintained by Alibaba staff using DingTalk’s software – the e-commerce giant’s own enterprise communication and collaboration platform. Released by the Communist Party’s publicity... https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2186770/alibaba-reportedly-behind-popular-chinese-communist-party-app?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2186770/alibaba-reportedly-behind-popular-chinese-communist-party-app?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Feb 2019 12:02:19 +0000 China is already home to a thriving black market for cheats and hacks in video games – and that is also true for new battle royale hit Apex Legends even though the game has yet to be launched in the country. Illegal software that gives players unfair advantages in Apex Legends is now up for sale on the Chinese internet, just as its developer is going after cheaters exploiting the game two weeks into its launch. A search of “Apex support” on Taobao Marketplace, China’s biggest online retail... https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2186641/china-has-black-market-cheats-hit-game-apex-legends-even-though-it-has-yet?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/gear/article/2186641/china-has-black-market-cheats-hit-game-apex-legends-even-though-it-has-yet?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Feb 2019 12:02:16 +0000 Tencent Holdings, which runs the world’s biggest video games business by revenue, is in talks with Electronic Arts (EA) to bring the US publisher’s new hit title Apex Legends to China, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. That deal would bolster Shenzhen-based Tencent’s portfolio of popular titles that it distributes in China, which includes two other hit video games in the battle royale genre – PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Fortnite. The Chinese internet giant’s tie-up... https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/2186371/tencent-talks-ea-bring-hit-battle-royale-game-apex-legends-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/2186371/tencent-talks-ea-bring-hit-battle-royale-game-apex-legends-china?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Feb 2019 11:36:00 +0000 A group of Chinese teenagers has created a video game about sex education, earning positive reviews for its exploration of topics still wildly considered taboo in mainland China. In Self-Reliance, players make decisions for the protagonists in a variety of adult content-free scenarios, leading the story in different directions. The game was developed by Eroducate: seven high school students in Shanghai who not only made the game, but also acted on camera to simulate various sex education issues... https://www.scmp.com/society/chinese-game-self-reliance-aims-provide-sex-education-chinas-teenagers/article/3000825?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/society/chinese-game-self-reliance-aims-provide-sex-education-chinas-teenagers/article/3000825?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Feb 2019 08:57:09 +0000 A group of Chinese teenagers have created a video game about sex education – a topic still taboo in mainland China – earning positive reviews on the US-based video game distribution platform Steam. Self-Reliance is an interactive video game where players make decisions for the protagonists and lead the story in different directions. It was developed by seven high school students in Shanghai, who acted on camera to simulate various sex education issues in real life. One chapter of the game... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2186178/chinese-high-school-students-create-daring-sex-education-game?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2186178/chinese-high-school-students-create-daring-sex-education-game?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Feb 2019 22:33:15 +0000 What’s the most popular app in China? No, it’s not WeChat, despite its one billion users. Nor video sharing app Douyin, known in the west as TikTok. Instead it’s an app designed to teach Chinese people the tenets of their leader President Xi Jinping. With the country’s ruling Communist Party launching a new campaign that calls on its cadres to immerse themselves in political doctrine every day, a slick tool for teaching “Xi Jinping Thought” has become the most popular smartphone app in the... https://www.scmp.com/tech/xi-jinping-thought-propaganda-app-becomes-chinas-most-popular/article/3000813?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/xi-jinping-thought-propaganda-app-becomes-chinas-most-popular/article/3000813?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Feb 2019 09:26:00 +0000 A slick tool for teaching “Xi Jinping Thought” has become the most popular smartphone app in China, as the country’s ruling Communist Party launched a new campaign that calls on its cadres to immerse themselves in the political doctrine every day. Xuexi Qiangguo, which translates to “Study powerful country”, is now the most downloaded item on Apple’s domestic App Store, surpassing in demand social media apps such as WeChat and TikTok – known as Weixin and Douyin, respectively, in mainland... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2186037/chinas-most-popular-app-propaganda-tool-teaching-xi-jinping-thought?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2186037/chinas-most-popular-app-propaganda-tool-teaching-xi-jinping-thought?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Feb 2019 23:02:18 +0000 Zheping Huang Zheping Huang Amid a collapse in the digital asset market in 2018, which saw bitcoin lose 80 per cent of its value, many investors have moved into stable coins, which have been described as the “holy grail” of cryptocurrencies. Here is what you need to know about stable coins: What is a stable coin?  A stable coin is a cryptocurrency pegged to another stable asset, such as gold or the US dollar. While conventional digital money like bitcoin is highly volatile, stable coins are generally traded at a fixed... https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/2185955/cryptocurrency-101-what-stable-coin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/2185955/cryptocurrency-101-what-stable-coin?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Feb 2019 22:04:48 +0000 Game developers usually sell virtual goods from character skins to costumes to weapons to make money. Tencent Holdings, which runs the world's biggest video games business, is taking it one step further by selling real products. Tencent’s blockbuster mobile title, Honour of Kings, is now offering its own gold and silver accessories in partnership with Hong Kong jewellery retailer Chow Sang Sang, the Hong Kong-listed internet giant announced on the Chinese microblogging site Weibo on... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2185651/real-life-bracelet-honour-kings-video-game-valentines-tencent-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2185651/real-life-bracelet-honour-kings-video-game-valentines-tencent-and?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Feb 2019 05:15:00 +0000 Zheping Huang Zheping Huang There are many ways to measure the bursting of the cryptocurrency bubble last year: Bitcoin was down 80 per cent from its peak; over 900 digital tokens became worthless; the vaporised value of digital assets exceeded US$600 billion. Some metrics are more personal and show the pain felt by those on the ground who helped inflate the bubble. Over the past year, Michael Zhang, a 26-year-old telecommunications engineer based in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, put 40,000 yuan (US$5,964) into... https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/2184611/reality-show-dating-rapping-how-chinas-cryptocurrency-stars-are?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/2184611/reality-show-dating-rapping-how-chinas-cryptocurrency-stars-are?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 Feb 2019 02:00:15 +0000 Zheping Huang Zheping Huang The world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges are looking at reverse mergers in Hong Kong, as hopes dim for bitcoin mining rig makers’ plans to go public in the city. The back-door listing efforts have come to light amid the reluctance of the Hong Kong stock exchange to approve the initial public offering (IPO) applications of companies involved in the underregulated cryptocurrency industry, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Charles Li Xiaojia, chief executive of the Hong Kong... https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2183667/chinese-cryptocurrency-exchanges-seek-reverse-mergers-hong-kong-ipo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2183667/chinese-cryptocurrency-exchanges-seek-reverse-mergers-hong-kong-ipo?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jan 2019 02:02:20 +0000 Tencent Holdings and NetEase, which run China’s two biggest video game operations, received their first new game licences after a nine-month freeze by Chinese regulators, removing the cloud of uncertainty over these firms’ main revenue source. The State Administration of Press and Publications (SAPP) on Thursday published a list of 95 approved titles that it reviewed on January 13, marking the fourth round of game approvals since the government resumed granting new licences in December. Tencent,... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2183517/tencent-netease-gets-new-video-game-licences-after-nine-month?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2183517/tencent-netease-gets-new-video-game-licences-after-nine-month?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Jan 2019 11:30:30 +0000 Companies seeking to go public in Hong Kong should show consistency in their business models, according to Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) chief executive Charles Li Xiaojia, who was speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday. His comments were in response to media questions about the status of initial public offering (IPO) applications from the world’s biggest makers of cryptocurrency mining rigs – Bitmain Technologies, Canaan Creative and Ebang... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/2183460/hong-kong-exchange-head-clarifies-listing-rules-ipo-hopes-dim?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/2183460/hong-kong-exchange-head-clarifies-listing-rules-ipo-hopes-dim?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Jan 2019 06:00:00 +0000 China’s gaming regulator has licensed a new batch of video games as the government body resumes work after a nine-month freeze, but titles from Tencent Holdings and NetEase are still absent from the list. The State Administration of Press and Publications (SAPP) on Tuesday published a list of 93 approved titles – the first batch of domestic games the regulator reviewed this year and the third since it resumed licence approvals in December. That put the total number of approved game titles to 257... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2183144/tencent-netease-miss-out-again-chinese-government-approves-third?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2183144/tencent-netease-miss-out-again-chinese-government-approves-third?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Jan 2019 06:47:18 +0000 One year can make a lot of difference in the roller-coaster world of cryptocurrencies. At the start of 2018, China’s Huobi Group offered one senior executive the highest year-end bonus of 300 bitcoin, worth around US$3 million at the time. Now the digital-asset exchange is letting people go, after bitcoin plunged 80 per cent from its peak. But despite trading volumes shrinking to just a tenth of its record at one point, the Beijing-based company is still profitable each month, according to Livio... https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/2183059/how-chinese-cryptocurrency-exchange-huobi-weathering-prolonged?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/blockchain/article/2183059/how-chinese-cryptocurrency-exchange-huobi-weathering-prolonged?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Jan 2019 22:00:15 +0000 China’s food delivery giant Meituan Dianping is hiring game developers in a sign that the US$30 billion company is preparing to make a foray into video gaming, even as the government seeks to limit the damage that unchecked gaming can have on the mental and physical health of the country’s youth. The Beijing-based firm on Monday posted several game-related job ads on Chinese resume sites, with positions ranging from coders to art designers to producers. On liepin.com, one job opening said... https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2182114/chinese-food-delivery-giant-meituan-prepares-gaming-foray-despite?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/2182114/chinese-food-delivery-giant-meituan-prepares-gaming-foray-despite?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jan 2019 05:15:45 +0000 A mega database with more than 200 million resumes of Chinese jobseekers has been leaked in one of the biggest China-related data exposures ever, according to European bug bounty platform HackenProof. Bob Diachenko, a Ukraine-based security researcher with HackenProof, on December 28 found an open, unprotected database server containing detailed CVs from over 202 million Chinese users, he said in a post published this week. The resumes included sensitive information, from names to mobile numbers... https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/2181709/200-million-resumes-chinese-jobseekers-leaked-cybersecurity-researcher?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/2181709/200-million-resumes-chinese-jobseekers-leaked-cybersecurity-researcher?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Jan 2019 09:30:06 +0000