China Tech Talk

As the coronavirus swept through China, communities, local governments, and business have been trying to figure out how to best follow social isolation rules. This being China, of course, tech majors and telcos jumped at the chance to serve the country by leveraging their vast data pools. But how much tech is actually behind the country's health code systems? Should we be more worried about how China is using data.
 
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Guest
David Cohen, @MartynvanBuren
Hosts
John Artman, @knowsnothing, TechNode
Matthew Brennan, @mbrennanchina, ChinaChannel
Editor
Peter Isachenko
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Music: “Theme from Penguins on Parade” by Lee Rosevere, Music for Podcasts 3

The coronavirus epidemic doesn't show any signs of getting any better just yet. While the future of the outbreak is still unclear, the winners and losers of this are clear. In this episode, Matt and John discuss how the coronavirus is changing the face of tech in China.

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Hosts
John Artman, @knowsnothing, TechNode
Matthew Brennan, @mbrennanchina,ChinaChannel
Editor
Peter Isachenko
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Music: “Theme from Penguins on Parade” by Lee Rosevere, Music for Podcasts 3

This episode, Matt and John embark on a wide-ranging discussion about China tech in 2019. Using Bytedance as a lens, they explore the disruptive power of new companies, Bytedance's successes and challenges outside of China, as well as what the world is learning from China tech.
Key Questions
What's changed with Bytedance since we last talked about them?
What challenges are they facing outside of China?
How are other countries dealing with highly successful Chinese consumer products?
How is Bytedance acting as a disruptor at home and abroad?
What should we be thinking about as 2019 comes to a close?
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66: The next Facebook will be Chinese
Hosts
John Artman, @knowsnothing, TechNode
Matthew Brennan, @mbrennanchina, ChinaChannel
Editor
Peter Isachenko
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Music: “Theme from Penguins on Parade” by Lee Rosevere, Music for Podcasts 3

China's social credit system (SCS) gets a lot of attention outside of China yet it's still very misunderstood. Many scholars and China watchers have shed light on the topic, but none have done it so concisely and accessibly as Kendra Schaefer and her team at Trivium China. She joins us this week to explain how the SCS is a broad framework for better regulation and enforcement and how it applies to companies, individuals, and government agencies.
Key questions
What is the purpose of the SCS? How far along is its development?
Is the SCS only for individuals?
How does the SCS apply to companies?
How are China's cities gamifying SCS?
Links
77: Peer-to-peer lending in China—Tech-driven shadow banking with Andrew Polk
The apps using social credit in China
Executive Summary: UNDERSTANDING CHINA’S SOCIAL CREDIT SYSTEM
China's Social Credit System: An Evolving Practice of Control
Keeping track of social credit
EUROPEAN CHAMBER REPORT ON CHINA’S CORPORATE SOCIAL CREDIT SYSTEM A WAKE-UP CALL FOR EUROPEAN BUSINESS IN CHINA
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Guest
Kendra Shaefer, @triviumchina
Hosts
John Artman, @knowsnothing, TechNode
Matthew Brennan, @mbrennanchina, ChinaChannel
Editor
Peter Isachenko
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Music: “Theme from Penguins on Parade” by Lee Rosevere, Music for Podcasts 3

After an extended hiatus, John and Matt are back! This week, they look at the increasingly effective trend of private traffic. Powered by WeChat and its mini programs, marketers and brands are increasingly creating and driving organic traffic to their shops. Like owned traffic in the West, this is a direct response to the rising costs of reaching fans and followers. Matt delivered a presentation on the topic during the ChinaChat 2019 conference and they take a deep dive into the phenomenon this week.
Key questions
What is private traffic?
Why are brands resorting to this method?
How does private traffic work?
How do WeChat and Tencent view private traffic?
What are traditional e-commerce platforms like Taobao doing to combat private traffic?
Links
TechCrunch Shenzhen Nov 11-12
Presentations from ChinaChat 2019
China Tech Talk 83: Podcasting and why the open web is dead in China with Rio Zhan
China Tech Talk 10: [Interview] Influencers in China and the future of brands with Elijah Whaley
China Tech Talk 37: Weibo’s KOL woes with Elijah Whaley
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Hosts
John Artman, @knowsnothing, TechNode
Matthew Brennan, @mbrennanchina, ChinaChannel
Editor
Peter Isachenko
Podcast information
iTunes
Spotify
RSS feed
Music: “Theme from Penguins on Parade” by Lee Rosevere, Music for Podcasts 3