China as Factory Floor: The End of an Era

David is referenced and quoted in Janet Carmosky‘s article in Forbes recently, talking about the coming decline of China as a manufacturing economy.

China, Multinationals, and Local Product Development

David is extensively quoted in this AdAge piece by Normandy Madden that discusses the growing trend among multinationals to develop products for China in the PRC, rather than localize current production.

David outlines several reasons behind this trend, but warns it is not for the newly-arrived:

The success stories come from companies who have a decade or more of experience in China and who have taken their lessons to heart. It may be counter-intuitive, but the best way to earn that experience is to test and modify your current offerings in the crucible of the market.

Also on this topic, take a look at David’s article in Silicon Hutong “Made for China is Nothing New,” responding to a McKinsey article at the Harvard Business Review blog advocating a “create local” strategy.

Knowledge @Wharton quotes David on Online Video in China

Image via Wikipedia

David was quoted on the prospects for online video in China in a recent article in Knowledge@Wharton, the online business journal of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

An excerpt:

“What we are looking at [with the IPOs] is not just online sites for videos. We are really looking at the birth of two major, 21st-century international media companies,” says David Wolf, founder and CEO of Wolf Group Asia (WGA), a management advisory firm in Beijing and Los Angeles. “They are going to become large international media companies, [involved in everything] from online delivery to online broadcasting channels.”

Read the article here in English, and here in Chinese.

Asia Sentinel: China’s Youtube Lookalikes File US IPOs

Hamish McKenzie’s writeup on the prospects of Tudou, Youku, and Qiyi. David is quoted extensively in the article.

IT World: Chinese video site Tudou files for $120 million IPO in US

Michael Kan from IDG interviewed David on Tudou’s recent IPO. As David noted:

“What’s encouraging is the rate of growth,” said David Wolf, CEO of Wolf Group Asia, a Beijing-based technology consultancy. “But they do have a fundamental cost problem.”

and

“It’s become a very, very costly business. The cost of private capital cannot support its continued growth,” Wolf said. “I think the private well is dry essentially, and this is the reason they are going for an IPO.”

David is just wrapping up the report on China’s online video sites that he is co-authoring with the research team at CMM-Intelligence. To buy a copy of the report, slated for release in early December, please check this link, or email us at info@wolfgroupasia.com.

WSJ: The China Challenges for Social Media

The Wall Street Journal’s China Real Time Report covering the recent Stanford China 2.0 conference in Beijing summarized some of WGA CEO David Wolf’s remarks at the conference.

Addressing online video, David Wolf, chief executive of Wolf Group Asia, a Beijing-based marketing strategy firm, said private online video websites face risks in part because of the strength of government broadcaster China Central Television, which will want in on the ad dollars going to online video.

For more on our take on online video in China, check out the report David authored with CMMI on the sector.

Warc: E-Commerce Sales to Surge in China

Image via CrunchBase

Commenting on the partnership between Taobao and Adidas to create an online store for the sportswear brand in a new area of Taobao, WGA President David Wolf was quoted in this Warc article on China’s e-commerce surge:

David Wolf, president of consultancy Wolf Group Asia, described such moves as “long overdue”, with Taobao boasting 200m members and driving $29bn (€20.9bn; £18.5bn) in sales last year.

“What Taobao is offering [companies] is not just a new channel,” he said. “It is offering a way to reach a whole new spectrum of consumers in China who want their products.”

The article was sourced from Lara Farrar’s CNN article here.

ITworld: Huawei Inests More in Software for Telecom Operators

Image via Wikipedia

IDG’s Michael Kan reports on Huawei‘s efforts to diversify out of hardware and into the software that carriers need to offer value-added services. WGA’s David Wolf gives his view.

Huawei has said the Digital Shopping Mall is intended to complement, rather than compete with, other app stores already on the market.

“Huawei is joining a growing party,” which will give app developers one more new platform to work with, said David Wolf, CEO of Wolf Group Asia, a Beijing-based technology consultancy. But even as Huawei invests more in its software division, the company is still “fundamentally a hardware company,” Wolf said.

“I think their momentum globally is with hardware,” he said. “For software services, it’s a long road. Domestically, they have to dominate before they can see more significant progress in software services.”

WSJ: Alibaba, Microsoft Team Up on Chinese Search Site

We expect that Baidu will not be left as the sole major player in the search sector in China, especially with so much money at stake. David explains this viewpoint to Loretta Chao at The Wall Street Journal.

IDG: iPhone Spurs Growth in 3G Market

WGA’s David Wolf in IDG on the effect the iPhone has had on boosting the prospects of the entire 3G handset market, including that for Android devices:

But analysts say the iPhone has made more Chinese users consider buying a smartphone and signing up with a 3G network.

“We are getting more people willing to make the leap. They will buy the smartphone, then they will get the 3G,” said David Wolf, CEO of Wolf Group Asia, a Beijing-based technology consultancy. “The iPhone has been getting people aware of what that 3G user experience can be like.”