The China Strategy: Copy first, Innovate later

In this world, you are either the leader or the follower. China is huge, but it is still considered a follower, at least from a third party point of view. In China’s Internet start-up community, it is more about bringing ideas from the West to the East – package, localize and sell. That’s the plan.

Even Niklas Zennstrom, Founder of Skype confirmed it in an earlier interview. It is amazing to know so many Chinese tech start-ups taking ideas from the West. Twitter and Facebook aren’t the only ones that were copied. The clones also include Instragram, Tumblr, Groupon and Foursquare. For some clones, even the designs look exactly the same (check out the list here).

Trust me, China’s cloning production will not be stopping any time soon. Anything that is successful in the U.S can probably be found in China (otherwise, that would be an opportunity). However, I’m not suggesting that China wouldn’t innovate. It will, soon, after enough clones are set up in the country. To me, these Internet clones are the foundation for innovation. In the process of cloning, there will be Chinese who are innovating. That is because China and U.S are different markets with unique consumer behavior and needs.

The copied service can’t be exactly the same. Product has to change and changes are usually accompanied by innovation. For now, most innovations are minor and mainly for localization to suit the market needs. However, as time passes, China will soon have her own “Mark Zuckerberg” and “Steve Jobs” who will revolutionize the world with his or her product.

If history were to repeat itself, the U.S will soon lose her ground as world leader. China is most likely the replacement. Of course, that will take time but not too long either. Most of you who are reading this article will live to see that day. It will be an interesting transition as we see China innovate and lead the world (hopefully for the better). What would be the next big thing after Facebook? Will it be made in China?