China says no to foreign investment in VWs, MMOs
(Visited 6315 times) Game talk
Oct 142009
These days, it’s more likely that the money flows in the other direction, but it’s interesting to see nonetheless:
Over the weekend the government run General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) and National Copyright Administration issued regulations designed to limit the influence foreign companies have in that region. US companies that wish to operate in China will need to license their content rather then enter into a joint venture.
Virtual Worlds News: China Bans Foreign Investment In Online Games, Virtual Worlds.
3 Responses to “China says no to foreign investment in VWs, MMOs”
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Screw China. One has to be a fool to be investing in entertainment in China with their regulations that make it so difficult for foreigners to take profits out of the business done there.
This conversation among Jon Taplin, Gordon Crawford and Peter Chernin at USC Annenberg is worth an hour.
Saying “screw China” is like saying “screw money”.
For a product like World of Warcraft there is a huge amount of money to be made from selling their game in China. Sure, the average player pays less but their subscriber numbers went from 5 million to 11 million when they launched in China.
The costs are only for localisation and local distribution which are very small in comparison to the cost of developing a triple A MMO.
What I imagine will happen is that politicians friendly to or interested in the affected industry will lobby the government officials who negotiate trade agreements just as in any other case of protectionism. They in turn will bring the issues to the table in GATT/WTO talks and other fora.
If you’re sympathetic to the games industry and get a chance to bend a politician’s ear you will help people like Raph by explaining the problem to them.
You will also help many genuine games fans who are denied a chance to play the game they love by virtue of where they happen to live.
I pointed to the video discussion at Annenberg where serious investors took up the problems of Chinese regulations and entertainment partners. It is strictly a business proposition. If the Chinese government wants to treat the Chinese gamers altruistically, it is theirs to do. Otherwise, the foreign investors are getting ripped off by the Chinese government.
A soft heart is easily loved. A soft head is easily led.