DISQUS

Engago team · 9 months ago

Change of times:
China surpasses the US.

Annalise · 9 months ago

Tencent offers everything to its users on one site. Instant messaging, social network, game developer, virtual goods, etc are aspects that are not widely nclusive to site like Myspace. However, all social networks will probably add these apps to increase profits. -Annalise http://www.ezanga.com

Steven "PlayNoEvil" Davis · 9 months ago

Tencent's core business is its QQ chat & voice program which totally dominates in China. They have been doing virtual currency for years with Q-coins - which have gotten so popular that a year or so ago the Chinese government was considering regulating the currency. They also have games for Q coins and numerous other services built on their chat & currency applications.

The main business has and remains QQ (chat), not the social network. Tencent has been a profoundly important company for years, and pretty much unnoticed in the West. It is a company to watch (and I've written about them for years at my blog playnoevil.com

TedHoward · 9 months ago

@Annalise, Tencent has been doing all of that for years. I think the first analysis of Tencent and QQ I saw was over three years ago. At that time, they already had a huge microtransaction business. Their business is based on it. The US-based SN's are not based on transactions at all and changing that is non-trivial as it will change the internal culture, design, and end-user experience significantly.

Tim · 9 months ago

Yes, I have heard a lot about Tencent. I think those working on trying to make money for twitter should take a look at this company.

Vinko · 9 months ago

Tencent focus on so-called IVAS revenue is not new. They had been doing in for years like the other commenters have pointed out.

Japanese and Korean online (web and mobile) services had also done similar and more extensive efforts.

This IVAS business model had not gone unnoticed by online properties of the West, it is just that members of these properties in Asia seems to be more receptive to this model. Other Western online properties that had used similar models are SecondLife and War of Warcraft.

For the sake of disclosure: I own Tencent stock for over 4 years.

Haroon · 9 months ago

It's the QQ group, even in Pakistan , QQ Group holds a large variety of Communication area,
and CellFones!

Lamont Williams · 9 months ago

That sounds like a great site. Everything in one site. Hopefully, the USA will create a site with similar qualities. Till then we are stuck with the ordinary chat sites, such as MySpace, Facebook, and my personal favorite, Yuwie.

John Davis · 9 months ago

Wow, makes good sense to me!

RT
www.online-privacy.pro.tc

Terri Morgan · 9 months ago

Certainly it is much easier for GOVERNMENT-SUPPORTED and GOVERNMENT-FUNDED so-called 'free enterprises' in China to achive such results.

I hold US copyrights and documentation from __2005_ for the same software (create your online avatar) along with social networking, purchases of virtual and tangible goods, and a couple other functional areas. The basic model was created in WoW and Second Life.

But I'm American, and the US Government is not in the business of funding folks like me. In fact, the NSF turned me down. So please, Lamont Williams, don't assume there isn't someone here in the USA already working on such things. If you have the money, I'd welcome a conversation.

If even one of the VC's I'd spoken with in 2005 had followed through, this discussion would be entirely different.

It's not necessarily that China or anyone there is "leading;" it's that the fundamental funding and business models are different.

HJG · 9 months ago

Where do all those ignorant American hooligans come from? Tencent's QQ messenger service passed the TEN years mark. Their avatar, chats and game services are ancient. Tencent also runs a news portal (it's comprehensive, if not top notch reporting), the most INCREDIBLE music software ever (iTune? Dude, can't compare), and some kick ass online games. They have been doing this for FAR longer and they have the whole package. They are leading PRECISELY for these reasons. I was once a devout MSN person, but after one faulty computer viral outbreak, I could never install the latest version again, so I switched to QQ, which I just like SO much better. It's squeaky clean and very pretty. If I were in China and have an easy way to funnel money to them I would spend money there too. Also, Chinese internet culture is just so much richer and more dynamic than the internet culture elsewhere----there are way more opportunities to make money. There is a famous website called Qidian, where individual users go to write serial novels, attract readers, and possibly become published (readers have to pay for published portions). I can't tell you the revenue of the site, but there a dozen AUTHORS who make over a million yuan a year on there. You think you can do that in the US?

Viz · 9 months ago

Google should be salivating at the possibility of taking over this social network in a much needed Chinese market

Tom · 9 months ago

There are so many social sites available.It´s hard to choose which ones you should use.I have never heard of Tencent before even though I have been using social media for quite some time now.