We all know why we’re here: to get a taste of the top stories Tech in Asia covered from across the region this week. But before we do that, let’s all take a second to breakdance in celebration of the weekend. Ready? GO! …OK, here’s the news:
Charlie’s pick: Jack Ma’s Last Speech as CEO
Although I’m sure we’ll still see him around, it’s the end of an era at Alibaba with founder Jack Ma stepping out of the CEO’s chair to take a more background role at the company. It’d be hard to understate the effect Ma and his company have had on the development of the Chinese internet over the past decade, so I think his last speech is worth reflecting on.
Steven’s pick: Confirmed: GREE Shuts Down China Branch
GREE’s big international push in the past couple of years hasn’t always gone smoothly. The Japanese social gaming behemoth has badly lost momentum with OpenFeint after acquiring it, and its game development offices haven’t produced a blockbuster in a while. But it was still a surprise when we learnt that GREE Beijing has suddenly shutting down this week.
Youshen’s pick: BBM No Longer Shackled to BlackBerry Platform: Will Indonesians Rejoice?
It seems to me that BlackBerry has adopted a new direction as a software company. With BBM (BlackBerry Messenger)’s availability on other platforms (Android and iOS), BlackBerry looks set to focus on software penetration. I would like to make reference to Volvo’s historical move to make its three-point seat belt design an open ecosystem in the interest of general safety. Could BlackBerry be repeating the same footsteps, but in the interest of BBM’s user community?
Willis’ and Andrew’s pick: SingTel Sets Aside $1.6B For Startup Acquisitions
WIllis: SingTel will be setting aside $1.6 billion for investment over the next three years. If that’s not big news, then I don’t know what is. Project Magellan could be part of the grand plan. But I’m guessing that SingTel has much more stuff under its sleeve.
Andrew: Wow! Singtel setting aside $1.6 billion for future investment. That’s quite a sum of money and we can probably expect them to go onto a shopping spree over the next three years. It’s good news I would say because exits here in Singapore are rare.
Emily’s pick: Alibaba Working on a Set-Top Box to Bring E-Commerce to Your TV?
Although it hasn’t been confirmed yet, the rumour of Alibaba coming up with their own set-top box is still juicy! It’ll definitely be interesting to see if indeed there will be a decision to bring e-commerce onto the television!
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