Lei Jun to international media: Don’t call me the Steve Jobs of China

It’s not easy being Xiaomi, according to Lei Jun.

There’s no doubt that while the company deserves the attention it receives, from the beginning, it’s been subject to over-excited, lazy comparisons to Apple and Samsung that ultimately fuels a petty backlash.

Wednesday, in a lengthy post on Xiaomi’s usually quite peppy Chinese-language official blog, the CEO expounded on his frustrations with the way news outlets and social media users have depicted the company and its leading figure. While Lei doesn’t quite lose his cool, he certainly doesn’t shy away from telling his critics how he feels. Among other issues, Lei directs his attention towards:

• Chinese-language media outlets that use the word “baofahu,” to describe Xiaomi (the term is commonly used to describe lower-class Chinese that have gotten rich overnight, and tends to contain an air of condescension). 
• Reporters that imply that Xiaomi is “the next Apple” or “the next Samsung.”
• Users unhappy with certain marketing and design decisions.

It’s a rant indeed, and we’ve translated the post in its entirety below.

Chinese media outlets, as one would expect, have published responses to Lei’s piece, calling some of his claims into question.

Since we like to stay out of pissing matches and want to respect Lei’s sentiments, we’ll keep our analysis to a minimum. One thing’s for sure, however – you attract more flies with honey than with vinegar, and a post like this is a drop of vinegar in Xiaomi’s otherwise sweet honey bucket.

Also, people: stop calling Xiaomi the Apple of China.

“Lei Jun said, ‘users are not gods!'”

“Lei Jun said, ‘Xiaomi will usurp Apple.'”

“The Wall Street Journal said, ‘Xiaomi is a baofahu’.'”

……

To be honest, whenever I see headlines like these, I’m extremely tempted to click and have a look.  These sort of headlines tend to cause heated debates among large numbers of readers. However, speaking honestly, I feel a bit torn, because many people will criticize me in these articles.