China 2.0 Tour: China Preconceptions "Blown Away" as Top Bloggers Meet Tech Execs

The China Business Network's China 2.0 Tour bridges key Chinese bloggers and Top Execs from Google, Alibaba, Symbio with first-time visitors from TechCrunch and other international blogs

Shanghai, China (PRWEB) November 26, 2008 -- Boarding a flight in the middle of a jam-packed week in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, Mike Butcher of TechCrunch UK said, "Never having visited China, but reading about it all the time, I had plenty of pre-conceived ideas. But almost all of these were blown away, especially after encountering a tech sector with an astonishing amount of sophistication, 'in-built' innovation and a people far more qualified and nimble than I had previously imagined."

Suzhou-based Ryan McLaughlin, who blogs for CNET Asia, joined a blogger dinner with Joe Tsai, CFO of Alibaba Group. McLaughlin said, "Alibaba, a home grown Chinese company, built the world's largest b2b community, launched auction site TaoBao to rout EBay in China, and built the market leader in online payment - AliPay - before PayPal even approached the market. They've succeeded largely because their brand is powerful with users and investors alike: they defy the idea that Chinese companies can't build and extend brands. "

The strength and agility of local competitors has made China is one of the few places in the world where Google plays underdog in the fight for market share. Kaifu Lee, President of Google China, addressed Butcher and his fellow bloggers Shel Israel, Ernst-Jan Pfauth, and Sheila Scarborough at the Marriott City Wall in Beijing. Lee's key theme: While the "home court advantage" of native Chinese companies includes understanding regulatory, enterprise culture and human resource environments, mastering the impact of the Chinese language in and of itself is a critical factor for international entrants in tech, because its structure shapes both the logic and behavior of users and the way machines deal with language.

Christine Lu, a blogger herself, and Founder of The China Business Network (http://thechinabusinessnetwork.com) explained The China2.0 Tour, "It was about using social media to bring a who's who of tech influencers together on both sides. A good bridge only needs to be built once: now everyone in the social media community can reinforce it, and allow others to cross into better understanding. " The China2.0 Tour was co-organized by Web2Asia www.web2asia.com and CNReviews http://www.cnreviews.com; lead sponsor Edelman Digital www.edelmandigital.com was joined by supporting sponsors including VisualCV, Alibaba, Symbio, Spil Group Asia, ChinICT, Mashable, Marriott City Wall Beijing, and Kompolt.

###