This week we saw lots of interesting reports, and more than a few interesting rumors to boot. But everyone has their favorites, so rather than delaying you further with some tired introduction, let’s just jump right into it. Here we go!
Charlie’s pick: Report: Baidu Acquires Social Video Rival PPS For Up to $400 Million
The rumors were flying this week about Baidu’s acquisition of PPS, and while it’s not yet officially confirmed, the move makes a lot of sense. If it is true, it could really shake up the video marketplace in China, and help Baidu pose a bigger threat to Youku-Tudou.
Steven’s pick: Qihoo Loses Tencent Lawsuit (Again), Must Pay Fine and Show Frontpage Apology (Again)
Chinese web company Qihoo was back in court this week, doing what it does best in this situation: losing. Twice in one week.
Willis’ pick: Japan’s GungHo Hits $10 Billion Market Cap
Puzzle and Dragons (almost) single-handedly turned Japan’s GungHo into a $10 billion company, surpassing DeNA and GREE along the way. It’s shockingly great but also worrying. The ride of a game company is roller coaster-like and GungHo is apparently enjoying its peak period. But it will experience a downfall as soon as gamers are bored of Puzzle and Dragons and the hype dries up.
Minghao’s pick: Agate Studio Enters Feature Phone Gaming Battle in Indonesia With New Social Platform
Besides e-commerce store Multiply closing down, I think this is another news worth noting. Chat apps and e-commerce sites are competing intensely in this market, another battle is looming ahead; the feature phone gaming platform battle. Kotagames is the earliest entrant, with FunSpot coming in this month, and now, one of Indonesia’s biggest game studios Agate Studio is joining the fight.
Emily’s and Enricko’s pick: An E-Commerce Giant in Indonesia Bites the Dust. What Happened to Multiply?
Emily: I suppose that this is going to impact adversely those who have stuck with Multiply throughout its evolution. Late in December 2012, it announced a total transformation to a 100 percent e-commerce site – and just less than three months later, it decided to just cease operations. This is a good investigation of why that happened.
Enricko: This is a shocker. Just two months ago everything looked rosy for Multiply. The site was ranked 47th in Indonesia and 17th in the Philippines, and the company was looking forward to its rebranding effort. A lot of people grew up with Multiply, from the social network days up until the end. Quite a few of them showed their support on the company’s Indonesian Facebook page, they still love Multiply, and hope the company can still bounce back. This is a sad day for everyone involved.
Youshen’s pick: Google, Baidu and Many Web Companies Set Up ‘People Finder’ Boards After Chinese Quake
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