China Mobile Goes Underground, An Anhui Taxi Driver Weighs In On The Internet And A Bone Goes Missing
On a recent weekend trip to Huang Shan that included a minor bus accident, an insurance settlement negotiation on the highway, multiple wrong turns (left & right), a random wet driver pickup, a " mysteriously misplaced bone," 5 minutes of hail (no typo), a late-night Majiang showdown and pumpkin seed poker (who needs virtual currency), some new light was shed on the literal downward direction of China Mobile, Internet search and online gaming.
On a weekend that was meant for the PE Team to get away from it all, China Mobile was inescapable. In contrast to many of the wireless players who, despite their best efforts to avoid it, seem to bump into China Mobile at every turn, our weekend encounter with China Mobile was actually a welcomed one in the most unlikely of places. After arriving at Huang Shan (or at least nearby), we found ourselves in caves running like veins under the mountain that were dug out 1000 years ago, or so the tour guide said.
As is the case on most trips to the middle of nowhere, we were a little worried about whether or not we would get mobile service so far from our beloved Shanghai. Upon entering the cave, instead of being warned of swarming bats and falling stalactites, we were meant with a sign that read "China Mobile happily brings you service within these caves," or something to that effect. Right next to that sign was a similar one posted by China Unicom.
We laughed at the thought that even though China Mobile continues to add 5 million subscribers a month and make further inroads into second and third-tier cities, its expansion is not limited merely to a lateral direction. China Mobile is penetrating downward into the depths of caves that run through the base of China's mountains. Needless to say, we were all pleasantly surprised and impressed by China Mobile's reach. There is no word yet whether or not China Mobile will now add a vertical element to its future expansion strategy by offering service on the moon, but we wouldn't put it past them.
After emerging from the Huang Shan caves, the next day we found ourselves in a cab in route to some ancient city. We just couldn't help ourselves and engaged the cab driver in a discussion of Internet search and online gaming. When asked which Internet search engine he preferred, Baidu or Google, he answered Baidu, which came to little surprise. We attempted to dig a little deeper to understand why he preferred Baidu to Google and his answer was simple: "it's a Chinese company." This answer actually came as little surprise. In contrast to the west, where superior technology tends to prevail in the minds of consumers, many Internet users in China, particularly in Anhui (assuming our one person sample size is representative), still prefer local companies despite inferior technology.
Our conversation then shifted to online gaming. We learned that our taxi driver, who was probably 27, is a self-proclaimed "former gamer." His game of choice back in the day was Mir 2. We asked him why he wasn't playing anymore and he simply replied that he didn't have the time. We suspected time was likely one of a few variables driving this decision to walk away from gaming. As the gaming market in China matures and some gamers near retirement age (28-30) where time, job and family constraints make the time investment impossible, we see a niche market emerging. We suspect if there was a game on the market that would be fun for our taxi driver and his wife to play (his 2 year old daughter is not yet a gamer), he might consider dusting off the old mouse and sharpening some of those key stroke skills to get back in the game.
On a weekend that was meant for the PE Team to get away from it all, China Mobile was inescapable. In contrast to many of the wireless players who, despite their best efforts to avoid it, seem to bump into China Mobile at every turn, our weekend encounter with China Mobile was actually a welcomed one in the most unlikely of places. After arriving at Huang Shan (or at least nearby), we found ourselves in caves running like veins under the mountain that were dug out 1000 years ago, or so the tour guide said.
As is the case on most trips to the middle of nowhere, we were a little worried about whether or not we would get mobile service so far from our beloved Shanghai. Upon entering the cave, instead of being warned of swarming bats and falling stalactites, we were meant with a sign that read "China Mobile happily brings you service within these caves," or something to that effect. Right next to that sign was a similar one posted by China Unicom.
We laughed at the thought that even though China Mobile continues to add 5 million subscribers a month and make further inroads into second and third-tier cities, its expansion is not limited merely to a lateral direction. China Mobile is penetrating downward into the depths of caves that run through the base of China's mountains. Needless to say, we were all pleasantly surprised and impressed by China Mobile's reach. There is no word yet whether or not China Mobile will now add a vertical element to its future expansion strategy by offering service on the moon, but we wouldn't put it past them.
After emerging from the Huang Shan caves, the next day we found ourselves in a cab in route to some ancient city. We just couldn't help ourselves and engaged the cab driver in a discussion of Internet search and online gaming. When asked which Internet search engine he preferred, Baidu or Google, he answered Baidu, which came to little surprise. We attempted to dig a little deeper to understand why he preferred Baidu to Google and his answer was simple: "it's a Chinese company." This answer actually came as little surprise. In contrast to the west, where superior technology tends to prevail in the minds of consumers, many Internet users in China, particularly in Anhui (assuming our one person sample size is representative), still prefer local companies despite inferior technology.
Our conversation then shifted to online gaming. We learned that our taxi driver, who was probably 27, is a self-proclaimed "former gamer." His game of choice back in the day was Mir 2. We asked him why he wasn't playing anymore and he simply replied that he didn't have the time. We suspected time was likely one of a few variables driving this decision to walk away from gaming. As the gaming market in China matures and some gamers near retirement age (28-30) where time, job and family constraints make the time investment impossible, we see a niche market emerging. We suspect if there was a game on the market that would be fun for our taxi driver and his wife to play (his 2 year old daughter is not yet a gamer), he might consider dusting off the old mouse and sharpening some of those key stroke skills to get back in the game.
The story of the mysterious missing bone is more of an inside joke within my company. Suffice to say we were enjoying a typical 17 person dinner last Saturday night that included enough food for an army. One dish that appeared on the table was a rather large pork dish topped with a sweet tasty glaze. Once we devoured the meat, a bone 1/4 the size of a human femur was left on the plate. One of my colleagues has 9 dogs and his wife was determined to transport the bone back to Shanghai to feed it to their dogs. Mysteriously, in the midst of all the eating, drinking and laughter, the bone vanished. The waiter assured everyone she didn't take it. A comprehensive top-to-bottom search of the private dining room we were in was conducted to no avail. We even looked out the window with no luck. It was left a mystery. No one knows what actually happened to the bone except, of course, for the person that made it disappear ;)
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