B2B Trade News

Alibaba 3rd most visited Ecommerce Marketplace on Internet

2011-09-18T00:36:00.000+08:00

In recent study by comScore about online global retail and auctions sites discovered that reached the largest global audience. Alibaba.com with over 156 million visitors in June 2011 was ranked third. Almost 20.4 % of the worldwide Internet population visited alibaba.com.

Gian Fulgoni, comScore co-founder and chairman said "While retail e-commerce has already grown to become a $150+ billion annual industry in the U.S., it still presents enormous upside opportunity across much of the globe,"

"Technology has changed the way consumers behave, and increasingly they are opting for the convenience and pricing advantages offered by the online channel. Several global retail brands have already capitalized on this global consumer trend, and many other retailers are sure to pursue their share of the pie."
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Alibaba Q2 Profits Rose 28% Beating Anlaysts Forecasts

2011-09-18T00:12:00.000+08:00

Alibaba.com beat forecasts of analysts by jumping 28 percent (RMB464.5 million (US$71.5 million)) in Q2 profit.

The company said the increase reflects its "focus on creating more value for our existing customers with enhanced products, services, and trust and safety initiatives, rather than accelerating new customer acquisition".

Customer numbers jumped nearly 60 percent over the year to 21.6 million after what Alibaba said was a "significant rise in overseas traffic" - traffic to its international B2B marketplace is up 65 percent for the year.
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Huawei goes Cloud with Huawei Vision Mobile Phones

2011-09-17T23:50:00.001+08:00

Huawei Device Co Ltd launched its first cell phone offering cloud-based services on Wednesday, joining other Chinese companies including Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Baidu Inc within the move to apply cloud computing technology in smartphones.

Huawei Device, the terminal branch of the world's 2 telecommunication equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, launched a 3.7-inch touch screen cell phone called "Vision" in its cloud phone global launch ceremony in Beijing on Wednesday August 3, 2011.
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Alibaba & Global Logistic Properties Signed Agreement

2011-08-21T11:46:00.001+08:00

Headquartered in Shanghai, Global Logistic Properties (GLP) has signed two agreements with Taobao Mall of Alibaba Group for the lease of two facilities in Shanghai and Guangzhou.

GLP said in a statement that the agreement marks the partnership between the two companies and is expected to improve the nationwide logistics facility network for Taobao Mall's online retailing business.

As per the agreement 55,000-square-metre facility in GLP Park Hongqiao (West) in Shanghai and a pre-leased 20,000 square metres in GLP Park Zhencheng (Xintang) which will be completed and delivered to Taobao Mall by the end of October 2011.

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Yahoo Sued Over Alibaba Payment Restructuring

2011-08-21T11:13:00.001+08:00

News from Yahoo! Inc. regarding Alipay restructuring and getting misled by Alibaba Group caused Yahoo! Inc. to get sued by its shareholders.

The investors, in a complaint filed in federal court in San Francisco, claim that Yahoo! was failed to tell them by May 10, 2011 that its $1 billion investment in Alibaba was “severely impaired” by the transfer of the payment business, Alipay, to a closely held company controlled by Alibaba Chairman Jack Ma.

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TradeSparq - The Social Network For Global Trade - Review

2011-08-13T04:23:00.000+08:00

Lately a new b2b social marketplace caught my eyes with its unique business model. As the founders say it is a combination of Alibaba & LinkedIn models. That is they took B2B part from Alibaba and let buyers & sellers do business on their own in a form of social networking. hmmm... pretty smart huh!

TradeSparq homepage snapshot 13-Aug-2011

As per TradeSparq "Why people sign on Linkedin? One of the reasons is that they want to be connected with guys from their partners, sellers or customers. And why Alibaba has been popular for years, because it enables an easy way for buyers to discover thousands of manufacturers which are mainly from China. However, when you are on Linkedin, usually you don't know what products your contacts' companies are actually selling; and on Alibaba, as a manufacturer if you want more exposure, you should pay certain membership fee which is not cheap (~$3,012 per year for Gold Suppliers membership). As a buyer, you can be easily got lost as you don't know which supplier you should trust more. These are the issues TradeSparq wants to solve."
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Western Union shakes hand with AliExpress.com

2011-08-13T03:47:00.001+08:00

Right when Paypal and AliExpress announced separation, Western Union, a known name in payment transfer services worldwide, has shaken hands with Alibaba Group. With this agreement, buyers by using Western Union on AliExpress.com can make cash payments to the suppliers from around the world.

Escrow as mentioned on AliExpress.com

Western Union and AliExpress expect it to become a key payment platform option in emerging or otherwise under-served markets such as Latin America, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa where entrepreneurs have limited payment options and rely on cash transactions to sustain and grow their businesses, said a statement.
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Picture worth a 1000 words - Alibaba's new image matching service

2011-08-10T21:47:00.000+08:00

Old saying "Picture worth a 1000 words", China based B2B Marketplace Alibaba.com has just made use of the wisdom behind. A new service has been introduced by Alibaba in which shoppers can now upload images of desired clothings. This service will help buyers & sellers to easily share their requirements such as style, color, design and textures.

Alibaba has given it a name in Chinese "Tuxiang", but in English Alibaba is tentatively calling it “Imagine" the service is a way for users to buy the clothing they see in advertisements or in celebrity photos, said Alibaba spokeswoman Florence Shih.

“We were hoping to give customers another channel to look for products, especially if you have an idea of what you would like to find but don’t know the keywords,” she said.

The service is currently limited to apparel, shoes and bags and let shoppers uploaded to the b2b website by using URL of image on some other websites or from their computer. Once a picture is uploaded to the website, either from a computer or a web link to the image, users select the category of product they want to search for. The service then attempts to find the best product matches in the Taobao Mall and Taobao Marketplace, Alibaba's online e-commerce sites. The results appear as a breakdown of more than a dozen different products shown as images with price comparisons.

The new image service came after a third-party developer team won an Alibaba-sponsored competition in January 2010 to create applications. the team then worked in cooperation with Alibaba to develop the search service.
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China's Small & Medium Sized Enterprises in Crisis

2011-08-10T06:49:00.000+08:00

According to a new survey published by Alibaba Group and Peking University on shows that small businesses in China are yet in crisis once again. As per the country's GDP data SME's account for 65 per cent of the country's GDP and provide almost 80 per cent of its jobs.

The major reason of this downfall is the increasing cost of labour and materials in China. In the said report over 2300 SME's were interviewed in one of the China's most economically active states, Zhejiang province.

“The interviewed companies' average capacity utilisation ratio [which measures how efficiently plants are being used] this year and last stands at 72 per cent, lower than in 2008 and 2009,” said Simon Hu, a vice president of Alibaba Group.
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Alipay relaxed as Yahoo and Alibaba reached to Agreement

2011-08-04T05:44:00.000+08:00

As per latest news, Yahoo & Alibaba have finally come to an agreement in a months-long battle over the ownership of payment site Alipay (online payment processor in China).

Problem started back in May when Yahoo disclosed to the SEC that Alibaba had transferred 100% of its ownership of Alipay to a new company controlled by Alibaba CEO Jack Ma.
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Alibaba Mobile OS Aliyun & K-Touch Cloud-Smart Phone W700

2011-07-31T21:21:00.002+08:00

Finaly the suspense is over after Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group has launched its own mobile operating system for handsets and tablets in China. The decision was made after the success of Android and Apple's iOS devices. Alibaba is primarily aiming to promote Chinese industry of IT services and also its online products such as B2B Marketplace (Alibaba.com), Taobao and group shopping in its China with this operating system.

Alibaba subsidiary Alibaba Cloud Computing unveiled the Aliyun OS on Thursday July 28, 2011, and displayed a Chinese-manufactured smartphone using the Linux-based operating system. As per the sources this phone will be available in Chinese makrets by the end of July, 2009 at estimated cost of 2,680 yuan (US$416). A tablet (AKA APAD in China) running the Aliyun is also expected to be launched in China later this year.

Competitive Advantage of Aliyun over Android & Apple iOS

The Aliyun OS not only can run Android apps, but it can also run Web-based apps built with HTML 5 or JavaScript. This feature will allow Alibaba and third-party developers to more easily deliver online products to devices using the operating system without having users to download any software, said Wang Jian, president of Alibaba Cloud Computing.
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Baidu China Ad Sales Surpassed Expectations

2011-07-31T20:22:00.000+08:00

Baidu Inc. (Search Engine Giant from China) beat estimates of analysts after biggest Internet company of China by market value boosted search-engine advertising sales after reporting a 95 percent surge in second-quarter profit.

According to bloomberg, Net income climbed to 1.63 billion yuan ($252.6 million), or 4.67 yuan per American depositary receipt, compared with 837.4 million yuan, or 2.4 yuan, a year earlier, Baidu said today in a statement. That exceeded the 1.5 billion yuan average of 12 analysts' estimates.
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AliPay go Mobile with Mobile Barcode Payments

2011-07-12T23:12:00.000+08:00

AliPay, the online payment division of e-commerce Alibaba, has brought 'mobile wallet' to Chinese stores, allowing transactions between shops and their customers. All customers need is to have AliPay application on their mobile phones.

How Alipay on Moble Phones works?
So far iPhone, Android and Nokia apps have released new mobile barcode payments feature for their handsets. Customers with iPhone, Android or Nokia phone need to install AliPay app on their phone first.

Sellers can easily accept the payments by just scanning through the barcode generated on their customer's cell-phone in one of two ways:

1. with the camera of their own smartphone (through their own AliPay account) or,
2. with the barcode scanning gun attached to their cash register.

isnt' it simple? ;)

To make it easier, Alipay did not want customers and shop-keepers to buy extra equipements and made it work with existing systems working all over China. At the moment, AliPay is aiming this at small shops, who need only to register (for free) to put the service into action.

With this system Alipay believe that they can get a bigger share from small businesses in China. They also have plans to make it even simpler and accessible and grow from small retailers to large transactions in future by integrating credit/debit cards using point-to-point terminals.

Shoppers can use funds contained just in their AliPay account, or on any debit or credit cards that they might have connected to it. The shopper will need to have internet access on their phone, by wifi, or 2G/GPRS or 3G.

Yahoo! Drops On Alibaba Fraud Arrests

2011-07-12T23:09:00.000+08:00

With the news of earlier this month 36 people were detained by police in China linked to Alibaba.com fraud investigations. As a consequence Yahoo! shares dropped almost 6 cents and closed at $12.83.

The fraud spanned several Web sites, not just Alibaba, and involved creation of multiple fake personal and business accounts. The fraudsters were able to take $6.6 million in payments and then never delivered the goods, according to remarks Chao cites by Alibaba Group representatives.

The company said it fired some employees who colluded with sellers creating fraudulent listings.

Buying Trend of Alibaba's 1 Million UK Members

2011-07-12T23:07:00.000+08:00

After achieving one million members target in UK, Alibaba has just released data regarding UK members spending behavior on their website.

Wide range of products have been shared by Alibaba. Some of the statistics are as follows

purchases in UK as per the data:
Machinery - 10.7%
Minerals - 5.8%
construction - 5.6%
Clothing - 5.1%
Computer products - 3.2%Electrical products - 3.0%

As per the stats every 1 out of 3 Alibaba members in the Europe are from the UK, which means there are another 2 million Alibaba customers spread across Europe. China is where the lions share of UK Alibaba purchases are made, but there's a growing number of UK suppliers on Alibaba which now account for 4% of purchases – Domestic UK purchases are now ahead of those from Hong Kong (3%).

Microsoft Partners with Baidu

2011-07-12T23:00:00.001+08:00

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Baidu Inc. agreed to bolster their Internet-search partnership in China as the companies seek to gain users from Google Inc. (GOOG) in the world's biggest Internet market.

The agreement will let Baidu users see English search results generated by the U.S. company's Bing technology to users in China, Viola Wang, a spokeswoman at Microsoft's MSN venture in China, said by phone today. A service jointly offered by the companies will start this year, Baidu said in an e-mailed statement today.

Baidu, based in Beijing, is expanding outside its main business of Chinese-language search, after fending off Google in China. Microsoft, which is gaining users for Bing in the U.S., is building on its partnership with Baidu after ending a search- engine agreement with China's Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd.

“This is not good news for Google," said Jake Li, who rates Baidu shares "accumulate” at Guotai Junan Securities in Shenzhen. Most Chinese Internet users currently prefer Google's English-language search results over Baidu, whose service will be improved by the partnership with Microsoft, he said.

Google declined to comment.

Google, owner of the world's most popular search engine, accounted for 19.2 percent of China's search market by revenue in the first quarter, down from 19.6 percent three months earlier, according to research firm Analysys International. Google's figures includes revenue generated from its local sites and international services, according to Analysys.

Market-Share Losses

Increased demand from Chinese companies marketing on international websites such as the English-language Google.com helped Google post increased revenue in China in 2010, Daniel Alegre, president for Asia-Pacific at Google, said in December.

Google has lost market share to Baidu in China since the Mountain View, California-based company pulled its Google.cn search-engine out of the country last year, according to data from Analysys. Baidu increased its share to 75.8 percent from 75.5 percent in the first quarter, while Microsoft Bing’s market share is less than 1 percent, according to Analysys.

Baidu had an existing agreement with Bing for some mobile- phone users in China, Haoyu Shen, senior vice-president at Baidu, said in May. Baidu is working on efforts to expand overseas, and its developing products in 12 foreign languages, Shen said at the time.

Alibaba stopped offering Microsoft Bing on its eTao search service, Justine Chao, a spokeswoman at Alibaba, said in May.

Source Blooberg

Alibaba-Yahoo Fight Highlights Threat to China Internet Control

2011-07-12T22:55:00.000+08:00

Warning to Beijing: Foreign capital is threatening to pry loose grip on the Internet in China.

Such, at least, was the argument advanced by researchers from China's top think tank in an essay published Monday.

“The combination of capital and the Internet is a mighty controlling power. The Internet is a special industry–once it is controlled by foreign capital, the impact could be severe,” Jing Linbo and Wang Xuefeng of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences wrote in the Study Times, a publication of the Communist Party School. “So far the issue of control has not been given sufficient attention.”

Exhibit number one, according to Mssrs. Jing and Wang: the recent dispute between Yahoo and Alibaba Group over the ownership of online-payments unit Alipay.

Yahoo, a major shareholder in Alibaba, said in a regulatory filing in May that Alibaba transferred ownership of Alipay to a company owned by Alibaba Chief Executive Jack Ma without seeking board approval or notifying the U.S. company. Alibaba has said the transfer was made necessary by a new central bank rule forbidding foreign ownership of online payments company and that it had been carried out transparently.

In an interview with the editor of Chinese business magazine Caixin, Alibaba founder Jack Ma defended the new ownership rule on security grounds.

The essay comes with a number of notable Chinese Internet companies having recently listed in the U.S., including video site Youku and Facebook-like social network Renren.

“If we judge by the indicator that a foreign control of over 20% stake is relatively controlled, and over 50% is majority-owned, then most Chinese Internet companies that are listed offshore are controlled by international capital,” the authors wrote. “International capital thus controls our Internet industry.”

They also said the combination of capital and the Internet will have an impact on politics and the government, adding that China should strengthen supervision not only over a company's capital structure but also its business operations, including its dealings with related parties.

While the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences is an influential government organization, it is unclear how much support the views have among government regulators. Publication in Study Times, however, means that the Communist Party does not object to making the views known to a wider audience.

Alibaba Mobile-Operating System Coming Soon!

2011-07-12T22:53:00.000+08:00

As per the news development of an operating system for mobile phones is under progress at Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. unit Alibaba Cloud Computing. Alibaba is planning to release first version in the third quarter.

The Alibaba offering will add to the competition in China for Google Inc.'s Android operating system, Apple Inc.'s iPhone smartphones and Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Phone platform.

Facebook going China

2011-07-12T22:49:00.000+08:00

Looks like time is not far when Facebook can also be used in China as sovereign wealth fund of China is reportedly planning to buy a stake in Facebook.

Business Insider, citing a source at a fund that buys stock from former Facebook employees, claimed yesterday that the Chinese buyer hopes to see if it could buy a stake large enough "to matter" of Facebook, the most popular social networking website in the world with 700 million users.

Citibank is trying to acquire as much as US$1.2 billion worth of Facebook stock on behalf of two sovereign wealth funds - China's and another from the Middle East.

China Investment Corp, the nation's sovereign fund, was not available for comments.

Thanks to its huge user base and clear business model through online advertising and promotion income, Facebook is now one of the most mentioned investment target in the industry.

The US-based website is widely expected to be listed in a year or two.

Though Facebook is not available on the Chinese mainland, its founder and Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg is keen on the market - the world's biggest - with more than 400 million Internet users.

Zuckberg will probably visit Shanghai in September, which will be his second trip to China. In 2010, the 27-year-old Facebook CEO met with leaders of the top Internet companies in China, including Baidu, Sina, Alibaba and Tencent.

Chinese Airlines to sell Tickets using Alipay

2011-07-09T17:35:00.000+08:00

Since increased oil prices and completion of high speed railway projects among major cities in China, airlines are actively seeking ways to reduce ticket prices. In the same effort Air China has undergone agreement with Alibaba Group's Alipay to sell tickets directly to customers from their online website.

From now on official Air China website, Alipay will be used for online payment support for ticket sales. Other airlines to follow are China Southern and China Eastern.

Currently, tickets offered by some airlines' official websites are cheaper than their agencies', because the authority of fixing the original price of the ticket belongs to the airlines, the report notes.

Due to high oil prices and earning less than 1% of a profit margin in the global airline industry, direct online outlet can increase airlines' profits as the reduction of commissions attracts more customers, the report said.

It is reported that the sale of over 90 percent of airline tickets in China have been conducted by agencies. Yet in developed countries, more than 30% of airlines tickets are directly sold from airlines' official websites, while the ratio even reaches 60 percent for some well-established companies.

Recently on Alipay

36 suspects Arrested by China Polic Over Alibaba Fraud Case

2011-07-09T17:20:00.000+08:00

36 suspects have been arrested in China for allegedly operating scams that netted US$6.6 million from customers of B2B websites like Alibaba.com, Tradekey.com, etc...

The arrested suspects operated by pretending to be legitimate suppliers on Alibaba.com. The arrests were made in the Putian, Chinese in April 2011, but were only disclosed on Wednesday at a news conference held by Alibaba and Hangzhou's public security bureau.

Buyers either did not get the products ordered while payments had been made to sellers or either they recieved totaly different or lower quality product. In past few years since online B2B marketplaces developed rapidly it had become a norm for buyers to get scammed.

As per the statement issued from Alibaba Hanzhou, the suspects used Alibaba.com and others websites to scam customers. Names of other websites has not been issued by Chinese police yet.

Alibaba took action against 36 suspects who were allegedly seen involved in fraud cases that had threatened to damage the reputation of Alibaba.com. In February, company took a bold step and revealed 2,326 suppliers on the alibaba.com website who had been engaged in scams against overseas buyers from 2009 to 2010. The fraud was so extensive that 100 sales people, along with several supervisors and sales managers were found responsible for allowing the crimes to evade detection.

Alibaba.com, and its parent company Alibaba Group, have sought to reassure customers of the site's safety. Alibaba.com's CEO and COO both resigned in response to the fraud cases, while employees involved with the fraud were terminated. Alibaba has also paid $1.94 million to compensate buyers who were victims on the fraud.

The 36 suspects, however, were only responsible for part of the fraudulent transactions committed on Alibaba.com, said Chan. The company has been assisting Chinese police to track down other suspects involved with e-commerce scams.

Following the disclosure of the fraud cases, Alibaba.com has taken new measures to prevent scams from taking place. Since February, the number of fraud complaints received monthly by Alibaba.com has declined 70 percent, according to the company.

Recently on B2B Marketplaces

SingleFeed Acquired by Alibaba Co. Vendio Services, Inc.

2011-07-09T16:55:00.000+08:00

Alibaba's Vendio Services Inc., a multi-channel e-commerce solution for small-to-medium sized businesses has acquired SingleFeed (singlefeed.com) a comparison shopping engine feed management and analytics company. SingleFeed enables top online merchants to submit, manage, and optimize product listings on more than 18 top comparison shopping engines starting from a single set of product details. The SingleFeed platform also provides powerful analytics that help merchants easily understand leads, sales and conversions.

SingleFeed strengthens Vendio's core mission of enabling merchants to sell to anyone, easily, by simplifying and enhancing their access to tens of millions of additional online shoppers. "For more than ten years, we have been growing with our merchants by helping them reach buyers wherever they are shopping," said Mike Effle, Vendio CEO. "We have expanded from our core eBay expertise to power Amazon marketplace sales and fully customizable, SEO-friendly free web stores that also integrate seamlessly within Facebook. SingleFeed's services not only expand the number of buyers our merchants can reach, but we were also particularly impressed by comments from existing customers who noted significant improvement in their businesses by leveraging SingleFeed's technology and expertise."

The comparison shopping engines drive between 15 and 40% of an online store's monthly visits, with three of the largest engines (Bing, Google Product Search, and The Find) offering cost free programs to merchants. SingleFeed takes a store's product data and delivers it to the shopping engines with minimal effort and works to improve shopping engine campaigns. Reporting analytics help merchants ensure budgets for paid shopping engines drive the maximum number of cost-effective sales and newly acquired customers.

Vendio will seamlessly integrate SingleFeed into its multi-channel e-commerce platform. Through this acquisition, SingleFeed's technology and services will also be offered to merchants using Auctiva, Vendio's sister company. In total, 250,000 Vendio and Auctiva merchants will be able to access SingleFeed through custom integration and take advantage of preferred pricing. SingleFeed will continue to operate as an independent brand and standalone service at the SingleFeed site, thereby ensuring existing customers and partners will not be disrupted in any way. Existing and new customers will benefit from additional investments to expand the SingleFeed services with additional enhancements such as new channels, improved analytics, and additional automation.

About Vendio Services, Inc., a division of Alibaba.com
Vendio, an Alibaba.com company (HKSE: 1688) (1688.HK), is a leading multi-channel e-commerce software solution that helps merchants sell wherever buyers are shopping. Vendio enables merchants to sell through online marketplaces, comparison shopping engines, a SEO-friendly web store and harness the power of social commerce, with an integrated app to sell on Facebook. Merchants use the Vendio platform to list products, and manage inventory, orders, and customers. Together with Alibaba.com and AliExpress (aliexpress.com), Vendio provides online merchants the ability to sell to anyone, anywhere. Alibaba.com makes it easy for millions of buyers and suppliers around the world to do business, forming a community of more than 65 million registered users in more than 240 countries and regions. Vendio alone has more than 90,000 merchants selling nearly $2 billion in merchandise. Vendio also operates Dealio (dealio.com), a shopping and coupons site for consumers. Alibaba.com has offices in more than 60 cities across Greater China, India, Japan, Korea, Europe and the United States, including Vendio's headquarters in San Mateo, CA.

About SingleFeed
SingleFeed helps online merchants succeed on more than 18 shopping engines by automatically delivering optimized data feeds to the highest quality shopping engines like Become, Google Product Search, Pricegrabber, and NexTag. Submit a single product data feed and SingleFeed will validate the feed, make automated corrections via hundreds of feed rules, spit back errors, suggest optimization opportunities, and also properly categorize all products for each of the shopping engines supported. SingleFeed only works with the top shopping engines to ensure merchants are getting the most qualified traffic. SingleFeed helps retailers save time and money getting up and running on the comparison shopping engines and maximizing their ROI. With affordable monthly service plans, SingleFeed is a cost effective solution for small and medium sized businesses.

PayPal Broke Up with AliExpress

2011-07-05T22:59:00.000+08:00

PayPal will stop its services as payment gateway for AliExpress from August 3, 2010. Aliexpress is a wholesale marketplace for small businesses launched by Alibaba.com. These two giants had old cooperation which is now going to end.

Immediate plan of using substitute has not been announced by AliExpress yet as the departure of PayPal can greatly impact AliExpress' business as well as their exploration in overseas markets. This leading online payment platform has been playing an important role in the business growth of AliExpress since the Alliance of Alibaba and eBay last year.

PayPal are the most frequently-used payment services with over 84 million active accounts, more than 220 million clients in 190 markets and 24 currencies all over the world. So cooperating with PayPal for AliExpress was significant in real time transaction online.

The cooperation termination between PayPal and AliExpress allows for great challenges and opportunities for other B2B platforms in China to boost their business and catch the eyes of more and more customers worldwide.

Alipay, an Alibaba Group company for online payment processcing is growing rapidly in China but it still have a long way to go to make its mark in the global market. PayPal seperation can impact many SMEs in China as their buyers feel it comfortable to use paypal as compare to other payment transfer methods.

Similar B2B News

Softbank Alipay Alibaba Progress Towards Settlement

2011-06-28T22:46:00.000+08:00

Agreement over the transfer of online payment unit Alipay between SOFTBANK Corp Japan and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd China is expected soon.

As per the statement from Softbank chairman Masayoshi Son, he expects to reach an agreement over the Alipay dispute soon, without elaborating, as he spoke at an energy forum yesterday in Seoul, South Korea.

In May 2011 Jack (Chairman Ma Alibaba Group) had transferred the group's payment company Alipay to a new entity under his control. Softbank and Yahoo! Inc, Alibaba's two biggest shareholders, demanded reasonable compensation for the loss of Alipay.

The dispute was raised in the central bank when new licensing system for non-financial third-party payment service providers was announced.

The People's Bank of China, said applicants must be domestically owned corporations with registration capital of at least 100 million yuan, according to an announcement in June 2010.

Companies with overseas investors were required to apply to the State Council for a license. Ma sold Alipay to Zhejiang Alibaba E-commerce Co, a private company controlled by himself and Xie Shihuang, another co-founder of Alibaba Group, for 330 million yuan. The transaction was completed last August.

Ma has insisted Alibaba board members were aware of the transaction and had agreed to the transfer.

Softbank currently owns about a 30% shares of Alibaba while Yahoo owns about 40%.

Recent Alibaba News:

eBay to Promote China Sellers

2011-06-28T22:25:00.001+08:00

eBay China

In order to gain success, eBay has made changes to its business model to suit Chinese market.
According to news ebay in 2006 had invested over $100 million in Eachnet with the aim of replicating the strategy used elsewhere. After failure of strategy in China. eBay has instead forged a position assisting Chinese enterprises wishing to sell their products to overseas shoppers.

Jeff Liao, eBay's chief executive in Greater China, told the Financial Times that the dramatic growth being experienced by many indigenous firms constitutes a huge opportunity.

"When we started our cross-border business in China in 2007, the majority of sellers were small and medium-sized businesses that were already online," he said. "But the situation has changed."

After passing probation of three to six months, over 180,000 vendors from China are selling their goods on ebay. Probation period is to ensure that nobody sell counterfeit goods. At present, eBay's client roster includes retailers like Vancl, the fashion chain, sportswear giant Li Ning, and Metersbonwe, the apparel specialist. Cross-border sales delivered 20% of eBay's business last year and represent an extremely promising area for future expansion.

"What really matters are the 96m registered buyers we have worldwide," Jay Lee, eBay's senior vice president, Asia Pacific, said.

In pursuing its current approach, eBay is encroaching on the territory of Alibaba, one of China's biggest ecommerce groups. Alibaba came to prominence by deploying a similar model in the business-to-business marketplace with "AliExpress". AliExpress is largely targeted at the B2B segment, individ & is good for wholesale buyers & sellers.

Previously, the ascent of Taobao, Alibaba's leading business-to-consumer property, undermined eBay's original forays in China. A further emerging source of competition between the two organisations lies in the electronic payments market.

From August, eBay will halt the operation of its PayPal system on AliExpress, a strategy attributed at least in part to concerns over the amount of consumer, rather than corporate, usage.
"PayPal remains deeply committed to China by providing Chinese merchants access to a safer and easier way to sell to millions of our users all over the world," said Dickson Seow, PayPal Asia Pacific's director of communications.

"You'll continue to see new initiatives, products and services from PayPal in China that help Chinese merchants grow their businesses by selling goods and services to our global buyers."

PayPal saw Chinese transactions reach a value of $4.4bn in 2010, up 44% on an annual basis. While eBay is all too aware Alibaba's scale in China, the American firm believes rigorous procedures for vetting vendors and insistence on high service standards should strengthen its local standing. Equally, eBay's stronger international status could serve as insulation against broader incursions from Alibaba.
"We don't know if business-to-business is [Alibaba's] real intent or if they are hiding behind that," said Lee. "But we have the buyer base."

The History & Milestones of Alibaba Group

2011-06-26T00:23:00.000+08:00

Very good work of infographic about Alibaba Group progress in last 10 years on Penn-Olson.

Alibaba.com share sores 1-week high after Alipay progress

2011-06-26T00:17:00.000+08:00

Shares of Alibaba.com Ltd (1688.HK), rose to a more than one-week high on Wednesday after Alibaba announced successful progress towards an agreement over the Alipay e-payment unit.

Alibaba Group China, Yahoo Inc USA (YHOO.O) and Softbank Corp Japan (9948.T) said on Wednesday that they had made "substantive and encouraging progress" toward an agreement over the Chinese company's Alipay e-payment unit.

Alibaba formed Chongqing Based Loan Company

2011-06-26T00:10:00.000+08:00

Alibaba.com (1688.HK) with three other shareholders, Fuxing Group, Yintai Group, and Wanxiang Group has formed a small loan company in Liangjiang New Area, Chongqing, to grant loans of up to 500,000 yuan to internet firms in central and western China. Alibaba has a 70-percent stake in the firm while other three shareholders have 10-percent interests.

Alibaba says the loan firm will grant unguaranteed loans to micro, small, and medium firms.

The Shenzhen-based company formed a similar firm in Hangzhou in June 2010. The subsidiary loaned out three billion yuan worth to nearly 50,000 internet firms that year. As of May 2011, its bad debt ratio hit 1.94 percent.

Baidu buys Qunar

2011-06-26T00:04:00.000+08:00

Baidu Inc, China's top search engine & then only known competitor to Google, is buying the China's leading travel website Qunar.com to strengthen its position in the competitive Internet sector.

Baidu, recently started focusing more on e-commerce and online video, dominates China's search engine market. In China Baidu competes with other players such as Tencent Holdings Ltd , SINA Corp and Alibaba.com Ltd.

Baidu said on Friday it would pay $306 million to become majority shareholder in Qunar.

"Travel has long been one of the top categories on Baidu, and the number of travellers in China has been growing very rapidly, so this is a market of obvious strategic importance to us," Jennifer Li, Baidu's Chief Financial Officer, said in a statement.

"Our investment in Qunar will create an even better search experience for users planning trips," Li said.

Shares in Baidu, which has a market capitalisation of about $43.5 billion, ended 3.5 percent higher on Thursday. Its shares are up by a third since the start of the year.

China is the world's largest Internet market with more than 450 million users, but with web penetration hovering around 30 percent and lack of sophisticated users outside the big cities, the potential for growth is huge.

Chinese consumers are using the Internet more often to book hotels and air tickets via websites such as Ctrip.com International Ltd as travelling becomes more common with increasing wealth.

Chloe Sues B2B Website for Enabling Counterfeit Sales

2011-06-25T23:53:00.000+08:00

Chloe International SAS, a Paris-based fashion house, and three other producers of luxury goods sued Saudi Arabia based online B2B Marketplace for trademark infringement.

Complaint was filed on May 17 2011 in federal court in Los Angeles against Sawabeh Information Services Co.(Siscom). In the report Siscom is accused of promoting counterfeit luxury goods on a wholesale level through several B2B websites.

Also included as defendants is a list of alleged manufacturers of counterfeit goods.

One of the accused sites allows its member clients to sell so-called “replica” items, which Chloe says is “a term well understood to refer to counterfeit goods.” This website -- www.tradekey.com -- “makes its money by knowingly soliciting manufacturers, importers and distributors of counterfeit luxury goods to become paying members,” according to court papers.

Members of tradekey.com who pay a higher annual fee "are also provided a ‘dedicated relationship manager' to ensure products and offerings for counterfeit luxury goods are provided maximum exposure to anyone searching on the Internet of TradeKey.com for counterfeit luxury goods,” Chloe says in its pleadings.

Neither TradeKey.com nor Sawabeh Information Services responded immediately to an e-mailed request for comment.

In addition to Chloe, the other companies that have brought the suit are London’s Alfred Dunhill Ltd.; Officine Panerai AG of Neuchatel, Switzerland; and Hamburg-based Montblanc-Simplo GmbH. Although the plaintiffs asked that the case be filed under seal, the complaint was available to the public when the court file was accessed June 17.

The plaintiffs are represented by Mark A. Finkelstein, Susan M. Kayser and Jessica D. Bradley of Washington -based Jones Day.

The case is Chloe SAS v. Sawabeh Information Services Co., 2:11-cv-04147-GAF-MAN, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (Los Angeles).

Tradekey is selling Scam - Tradekey Scam

2010-06-29T18:16:00.000+08:00

Scam has become a famous keyword in last few years. With the growth of online B2B Marketplaces, on one side where trade has increased, scam cases also became prominent. Manufacturers from around the world flocked to register on B2B websites in a hope to get inquiries. These B2B marketplaces gave space to all manufacturers regardless of checking thier legitimacy.

Innocent buyers who first trust search engines and then the B2B website they visit ultimately, sometimes by trust points and sometimes by golden or silver badges, easily get trapped.

In the race of winning over competitors, every marketplace is continuously trying to make a difference, even when it comes to scam as well. Tradekey.com is selling scam products and promoting scam manufacturers from around the world. Illegal? Who cares!

Here is the result form "Tradekey Scam" search on Google.

Other than "Scam Seeds" products include the shouts of (maybe) buyers who got scammed at times.

Cheaper TrustPass by Alibaba.com

2010-03-27T16:27:00.000+08:00

According to news Alibaba.com (1688.HK) is planning to release a basic version of its China TrustPass service from April 2, 2010 with a new price at RMB 1,688, or 40% of the package's current price tag.

Alibaba.com stated that this version of Trustpass will not include Winport 2.0, traffic analysis services and other value-added services. According to the report, existing China TrustPass users can choose to continue with the paid version or switch to the basic version, but new China TrustPass users may only opt for the basic version.

The company estimates the number of its paying users in China may double to about 1 million within two or three years, the report said.

Lets see what impact this price change caused on other B2B marketplaces. Last year in June when Alibaba had cut prices on its premium memberships, a sharp cut of prices from other B2B websites was observed.

More about Aliababa TrustPass:

Great Brands Of Tomorrow by Credit Suisse

2010-03-27T16:15:00.000+08:00

Credit Suisse Research Institute recently released report "Great Brands of Tomorrow". The purpose of this report is to emphasis on how a company's brand can be one of the few true competitive advantages remaining in modern industry. The summary of the report is as follows.

Accordint to the report Credit Suisse analysts has identified 27 "Great Brands Of Tomorrow". They believe these sectors will significantly outperform the market over the next 3-5 years as they build and leverage brand equity to grow in size, scale and profitability.

Based on case study analyses of dozens of brand stories from the last century, framework of Credit Suisse report two filters to determine how and when to invest in brand stocks:

Identifying the industry and company specific conditions necessary for brand success; and
understanding the brand lifecycle and key entry and exit points from a shareholder perspective

Omar Saad, a director at Credit Suisse and a U.S. Branded Apparel & Footwear analyst said, "We believe a strong brand is one of the most powerful and sustainable advantages a company can have, but one that is often ignored by the financial markets. We believe brand stocks will continue to outperform the market, and our proprietary framework analyzes brand lifecycles to determine how and when to invest in brands for optimal returns."

The 27 "Great Brands of Tomorrow" include: Alibaba.com, Almarai, Amazon, Apple, BIM, Capitec, China Merchants Bank, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Enfamil, Facebook, Hyundai Motor, Indian Hotels, Julius Baer, Li Ning, Mahindra & Mahindra, MercadoLibre, Mercedes-Benz, Polo Ralph Lauren, Sonova Holding, Swatch, Tiffany & Co., Tingyi, Trader Joe's, Tsingtao Brewery, Under Armour, Uniqlo, and Yakult Honsha.

Key findings from the "Great Brands Of Tomorrow" report include:

# Strong brand companies have consistently generated out-sized long-term growth and returns for shareholders. One indication is that an equal-weighted stock index of companies spending at least 2% of sales on marketing outperformed the S&P 500 by more than 400 bps annually since 1997. The top quintile of those companies outperformed the market by 17% per year.

# Industry matters. Brands are relevant in many industries beyond traditional consumer sectors, but some are more "brand-friendly" than others. Brand power is strongest in industries where there is close proximity to the end-user (i.e. fewer steps between consumer and brand), there is ample room for product differentiation among competitors; and reputation plays an important role in consumers' purchasing decisions.

# Most brands follow a similar arc with five distinct stages: emerge, hit the wall, transform/proliferate, dominate and reinvent. Investing in companies that are transforming from niche player into a powerful brand that can be proliferated across new markets and categories offers investors extremely attractive returns, and is typically the phase in the brand lifecycle that generates the largest market value creation.

# Tough financial times are often the most opportunistic backdrops for great brand companies to solidify strong existing brands, as weaker competitors scale back and new entrants delay risky plans. Historically, brand stocks have massively outperformed by 1,800 bps in the 6 quarters following an economic slowdown. History looks set to repeat itself following the Great Recession of 2008-09, as brand stocks have already started to outperform (700 bps since March 2009).

Alibaba.com looking to offer India-specific content

2010-02-24T13:49:00.000+08:00

After successfully registering 1 million members from India, Alibaba.com is looking to expand its presence in India further. The company has announced to launch customised content to fulfill the needs of Indian suppliers, buyers and traders. The changes might take place after the new lunar holidays in March 2010.

“In the next few weeks, Indian users of Alibaba would have access to content that is designed factoring in the local needs and culture. The users will get mailers on director market material and other mailers customised for India,” Mr Bharadwaj Pudipeddi, Sales Planner (Global Sales - Sales Programmes), of the company, told Business Line.

He added that Alibaba was gaining popularity among the small traders and SMEs. Last year, the membership in India doubled to 10 lakh (1 million) in just one year.

Among the Indian users, traders and businesses involved in minerals and metals received good response from their counterparts in China.

Recently about Alibaba.com on B2B Trade Blog:

EC21.com Launches B2B Community Service and Discussion Forums

2010-02-24T12:19:00.000+08:00

Following the footsteps of other global B2B marketplaces, EC21.com has also launched a service for its members to communicate each other within the website. The new Community Service, which is specially designed for global traders, includes 3 specific categories - Trade-related, Product-related and Non-Business.

Trade related topics such as basics of import and export, buyers lounge, trade shows and safe trading tips are welcomed by many EC21 members. As more users participate and more information is accumulated, the topics are expected to be extended to other areas including custom, tax, trade documentation and etc.
“Working in international trade industry, most of the SMEs suffer from lack of knowledge on international business. To fill the demand of SMEs regarding trade related matters, EC21 has developed a community forum service where users can freely exchange their experience and specialty with other fellow business people”, said System Development officer of EC21.
Same as trend setter Alibaba.com, the Community Service enables members’ active participation by evaluating and rewarding their contribution. Contribution is measured by the number of articles and comments by the user. Members can also evaluate other users by rating the user’s article, which makes new community service more interactive. With these features, the new service is expected to attract more business people to the website www.ec21.com and thus bringing benefits to existing and new-coming user altogether.
“I believe that our new service can help our members actively interact and react to each other so that they can produce ‘User-Created contents’ in its true meaning. This will be a part of our value-added contents and at the same time benefit members” said Tae-Sung Kim, the executive vice president of EC21. Really? Lets see!
It is open for all EC21 paid and free members and it is said that membership registration process will be simplified to help traders more easily become a member of EC21.

For more detail, visit http://community.ec21.com/

EC21 is a Korean online B2B Marketplace online since 1998, is one of the world's B2B marketplaces. So far they have 3 major e-marketplaces: 1. Global B2B marketplace (www.ec21.com) for worldwide exporters and importers, a Chinese-version marketplace (cn.ec21.com), and a Korean version marketplace (kr.ec21.com) for domestic traders in Korea. EC21 is headquartered in Seoul, Korea has 8 regional sales offices throughout mainland China along with sales offices in Vietnam, Turkey, India, Italy and Pakistan.

I liked the popular searches section on their homepage. It shows creative side of this website ;)

Taobao, Alipay sales rose to 100 mln more than the anticipated

2010-02-23T23:19:00.000+08:00

February 23, 2010: Alibaba Group's e-commerce marketplace Taobao.com set sales records and prove they have the experience and grounding to expand beyond China's borders

Taobao.com, a de-facto shopping site in China became most favourite marketplace when shoppers all over China rushed to the website for the Lunar New Year (LNY) vacations shopping. US$249 million in sales was recorded which is around US$100 million more than the sales forecast.

In China sharing gifts come to peak near the lunar new year holidays. This year shoppers were too eager to send gifts online as some Taobao’s shops stopped offering products due to the flood of demand.

Jack Ma (Ma Yun) Speech - Small is Beautiful - Alibaba.com

2010-02-19T02:56:00.001+08:00

WOW! I really admire his direct speech. November 16 2009, held in Singapore Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit on SMEs. Brilliant speech from the Alibaba Group CEO, Jack Ma (Ma Yun). Lasted over 20 minutes, contains so many things to learn from his experience and worth listening to for any entrepreneur. The topic was "small is beautiful".

One thing I like about Jack Ma that he is always blunt in his speeches. In this speech too he said things like:

Without successful SMEs, economy is not going to recover.
In the past it was like bigger is better, but in this century, small is beautiful.
Jack Ma warned all SMEs, not just rely on the Government or the banks.

In Jack Ma's opinion, the financial crisis for large enterprises is a disaster, but for small businesses is a great opportunity. With information technology SMEs can provide better services to consumers in the 21st century. Flexible small and medium enterprises can better adapt to market needs and understand their problems.

Imagine the future world, accounting for 70% of the gross domestic product will create even greater value to small and medium enterprises, will address more jobs, real economic recovery depends on the recovery of small and medium enterprises. Jack Ma also called on governments and banks provide 5 million dollars of common size of financial products for SMEs.

One thing that is common in Jack Ma and me ;) that we two believe in competitors analysis. We both love competitors and learn from their experiences.

In the industry of B2B marketpalces, only one other CEO shares the same or maybe better courage is the CEO of Tradekey.com, he is just another young entrepreneur who really is committed to his dreams and passion. I guess the same about the CEO of Made-In-China.com and wish to see him soon ;)

Here is a recording on Youku.com

Is Tradekey better than Alibaba & other B2B Marketplaces? - A Review

2010-02-19T01:39:00.000+08:00

Started in 2006 with 20 million USD investment by one of the biggest IT groups in KSA, Tradekey.com has again proved that it can be better than any other B2B marketplaces including the B2B giant Alibaba.com. Recently when Google shook results of most of the B2B websites by announcing its Caffeine update, Tradekey.com was found winning the race with its state of the art SEO strategy. One more badge added when Google rewarded them with Page Rank of 8.

With Google Page Rank 8, Tradekey.com has become the only B2B marketplace on internet leaving behind the B2B giant Alibaba.com who still stands at PR 7. Not only this Tradekey members counter shows that it has surpassed 4 million registered members count. Well according to the size of B2B market Tradekey still has long way to go but as long as the technological competition is, Tradekey, as a B2B marketplace, has made its mark now.

These are a few technological breakthroughs that this b2b marketplace has overcome. What about the business strategy? There are still many questions unanswered on various forums about the authenticity of suppliers. Every now and then buyers post their stories of being cheated by registered suppliers which Tradekey.com claims as Trusted.

What about Alibaba now? As per Jack Ma although he says that he loves competitors and unfortunately he sees no competitor far far away. Will Ma Yun (Jack Ma) of Alibaba.com be looking to hire experts from Tradekey.com after trying Yahoo & Google engineers? That time will tell!

Is ECVV.com a next online IPO B2B Marketplace from China?

2010-02-05T12:48:00.000+08:00

3 years back when no one had idea, Alibaba.com, a b2b marketplace rocked the internet industry of China with its launch of IPO in Hong Kong Stock Exchange. With a successful first runner experience, Alibaba launched several projects including B2C & C2C websites to prove its dominance over the internet market.
According to one Bain & Company Report:

“Alibaba.com, credited with almost single-handedly creating China’s e-commerce market, is viewed as an innovation legend, achieving more than 70 percent compound annual revenue growth between 2005 and 2007 and scoring the second-largest e-commerce initial public offering in history after the legendary Google.”
Many investors took a sharp turn towards investing their money in different IT companies and tens of internet based businesses developed in China in last 3 years.

Made-In-China.com, another online B2B website launched IPO last year in 2009 on Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Both of the online marketing companies struggled hard in their first business decade.

ECVV.com, launched in 2003, is considered as another big name China based online b2b marketplaces. With a slight difference in business model, ECVV is also trying to help small & medium sized enterprises in China to get exposure to global buyers. With movement of their office from Bank of China building near CBD to bigger office in one of the IT Parks Shenzhen, there are rumors in market that ECVV might be the next star. Following the roadmaps of Alibaba & Made-in-China, ECVV has already adapted several strategies and now attracting the top talents from the IT market.
According to news, many investors including Shenzhen Govt. have shown interest in ECVV.com. And have already started providing support for the company. In an interview with the CEO of ECVV.com, Mr. Chen Dong, said that with his innovative strategy, he is hopeful to compete in international markets soon.

As the internet technology is shifting from big screen desktops to small screen hand held devices, there is a technology shift expected in next 2 years. The success of less innovative companies will remain a question.

Made-In-China, Made-In-Jiangsu - B2B Marketplace for Jiangsu

2009-12-06T19:11:00.001+08:00

Nanjing-based business-to-business e-commerce site Made-in-China.com and Jiangsu province's Foreign Trade & Economic Cooperation Department have established an online international trading platform between October 1, 2009 and November 30, 2009, reports Jiangnan Times quoting a department source. Jiangsu based Import & export companies and registered members of Made-in-China.com can exhibit their products on the online fair site, said the report.

Chinese B2B marketplace Alibaba.com backs entry into UK with ad campaign

2009-12-06T19:08:00.000+08:00

B2B Marketplaces News: Alibaba.com launched its advertisement campaign in UK with a marketing campaign across TV, outdoor and online.

The campaign was created by truly London following its appointment to the business in June 2008 include TV Ad and special pages on Alibaba.com website for UK audience. The campaign ran for four weeks.

The ad campaign uses a number concepts based around the proposition of getting Alibaba.com ‘working for you'.

The ads ran on TV, reinforced by outdoor across 48 sheets, 96 sheets, digital Transvision and London taxis as well as online. The outdoor ads carry the strapline ‘Whatever your business, get Aliababa.com working for you'. London taxis, were liveried in the company's corporate orange and will carry the amended strapline ‘Let Aliababa.com drive your business'.

Chinavasion Advice For Alibaba AliExpress - 5 Warnings

2009-12-06T19:05:00.000+08:00

China B2B portal Alibaba.com, a b2b marketplace, has launched AliExpress, a shopping system aimed at small and medium-sized eBay resellers and online vendors. Wholesale electronics company, Chinavasion warns resellers that they can still be taken for a ride and offers them the tools to stop that happening.

Famous wholesale marketplace in China, Chinavasion has published a five-point guide for buyers to help them avoid being dodged by the suppliers on AliExpress, a new Alibaba.com wholesale website, launched in Aug 2009.

According to Chinavasion's PR Manager, Rose Li, AliExpress is aimed at smaller to medium sized sellers and adds a limited degree of security for people who source from Alibaba.

"The main Alibaba.com is essentially an advertising website: no deals are transacted. AliExpress is different. It's e-commerce with international shipping, and that's 100% new business territory for the Alibaba group."

The AliExpress wholesale website guaranteeing order fulfillment under an escrow arrangement. Alibaba is using Alipay as a the primary source of payment method. Alipay is already a widely used payment mehtod in China for transactions on its C2C website, Taboao.com

Chinavasion's Rose Li warned while the Alipay Escrow system might guarantee that resellers get something delivered they will still need to stay on their toes.

"Will buyers get what they want from AliExpress? Each supplier you find in AliExpress will have their own concepts of acceptable quality and speed. Since the goods are neither sold nor shipped by Alibaba themselves, the burden will still fall to the buyer to investigate and test each and every different supplier in the system before trusting them with orders."

In an effort to prevent resellers from being fleeced by sellers on AliExpress Chinavasion has put together the top five things to check for to prevent being taken for a ride by AliExpress suppliers, which can be read at tinyurl.com/AliExpress-Review for free.

As the first company to offer an online wholesale and dropshipping service online Rose Li said Chinavasion wanted to remind resellers what to look for when sourcing from China.

"We would like to offer our site Chinavasion.com as a price comparison for people shopping online through AliExpress. We are confident we offer a more user-friendly experience without the need to worry about quality, speed, or trust of unknown Chinese suppliers."

ChinaVasion published 5 warnings for buyers to be aware of AliExpress inexperience wholesale marketplace.

Warning Sign 1, They Offer Everything From Baby Shoes To Butt/Bum Massagers
Warning Sign 2, They Don’t Answer, Or Are Slow To Answer Your Pre-Sale Contact
Warning Sign 3, They Are Located In Fujian
Warning Sign 4, They Don’t Use The Same Name Or They Use A Name Without A Location
Warning Sign 5, They Claim To Sell Brand-Name Products

You can read more about the ChinaVasion VS Alibaba Express on CHinaVasion website news.

Alibaba.com Sets Up Zone for Zhuji, Zhejiang Province - Zhuji Local Enterprise E-Commerce Zone

2009-12-06T18:59:00.000+08:00

Alibaba.com, a b2b marketplace in agreement with the municipal gorvernment of Zhejiang province China in Aug 2009, has set up a special e-commerce. According to the news, the online zone "Zhuji Local Enterprise E-Commerce Zone" for industries in Zhuji will target more than 50,000 registered trade members, over 3,000 premium members and more than 10,000 SME's in next 3 years.

The Zhuji government will provide a three-year dedicated fund of RMB 5 mln per year to help SMEs develop e-commerce services. In addition, the municipal government will also partner with Alibaba to increase the proportion of loans granted to Zhuji SMEs by overseas banks.

Alibaba Moves Kaube to Taobao.com - From Yahoo China Brand to Taobao

2009-12-06T18:56:00.000+08:00

HONG KONG - Alibaba.com Ltd.'s, one of the b2b marketplaces shares were higher in Hong Kong trade Monday 24,Aug 2009, after its parent group announced a restructuring of its China Yahoo business. China's Alibaba Group, which controls Yahoo China, dropped the Yahoo brand and integrated it with booming auction platform Taobao.com.

Alibaba has separated Koubei.com, a classified-listings Web site, from China Yahoo and would transfer the unit into its c2c Web site, Taobao.com. According to Alibaba strategy, it is all to strengthen the C2C website, Taobao.com and reduce the cost.

The Koubei listing service was already merged with China Yahoo in June 2008 as part of an effort to revamp the website.

According to Alibaba Group the asset transfer was intended to maximize its value within the group and was made with the interests of all stakeholders in mind.

"We believe that the Koubei is going to be an additional asset to our Taobao.com platform," said John Spelich, Alibaba Group's vice president of international corporate affairs.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the move has strained relations between Alibaba and U.S.-based Yahoo and has caused a potential setback for China Yahoo.

Carol Bartz, Chief Executive of Yahoo, reportedly told Alibaba executives earlier this year that she was disappointed with the way the group has handled the Yahoo brand in China, the Journal reported.

Since 2005 share value of China's Internet search market firm China Yahoo is in steadily decline. It was a time when Yahoo paid $1 billion for a 39% stake in Alibaba Group and handed over transferred control of China Yahoo.

But Spelich said Yahoo has been a beneficiary of Alibaba Group's rising fortunes, with its original investment now estimated to be worth $3.6 billion.

"What's good for Alibaba is good for Yahoo, because Yahoo is our largest minority shareholder," Spelich said, adding that the U.S. Internet giant would still benefit from Koubei in its new place within Taobao.

The listing function of Koubei will fit better as part of Taobao than as part of China Yahoo, the spokesman said. Taobao, which lets users sell items through online stores or auctions, reported a transaction volume of 80.9 billion yuan (US$11.8 billion) in the first half of 2009, nearly double the figure from one year earlier. Registered users on the Web site also doubled during that period.

In August 2009, Alibaba.com acquired Alisoft's business management software division from the parent company for CNY208m ($30.5m) and integrate it into its Information Technology Business division. The restructuring was part of Alibaba.com's drive to transform itself from 'Meet at Alibaba' to 'Work at Alibaba' to offer small businesses tools to manage operations online.

China's Taobao transactions rise 97 pct in H1 2009

2009-11-21T18:54:00.001+08:00

SHANGHAI, Aug 20 2009 - China's top online auction firm, Taobao, said on Thursday its transaction volume in the first half of the year rose 97 percent to 80.9 billion yuan ($11.8 billion) while spending-per-order fell slightly due to the economic slowdown.

Taobao officials said the rise in volume was due to a 101 percent jump in the number of registered users and the growing acceptance of e-commerce among China's Internet users.

"What is most interesting is the level of mainstream acceptance of using online retail channels to shop for everyday items," said Jonathan Lu, president of Taobao.

Taobao said for the first half of 2009, household goods became the top-selling catergory by total sales transaction value, with Taobao merchants selling 438 household items per minute.

Taobao, which is widely considered China's eBay (EBAY.O), has a 78 percent share of China's domestic online consumer market, the firm said, quoting statistics from iResearch.

China's domestic consumer spending has remained resilient during the global economic downturn as Beijing's massive stimulus spending has helped to sustain income growth.

Alibaba Launched China Wholesale Website "AliExpress"

2009-11-21T18:52:00.001+08:00

Shenzhen, Guangdong, Aug 20, 2009 one of the largest B2B marketplaces, Alibaba.com Limited (HKG:1688) launched a new service called 'AliExpress' - modelled on existing Chinese B2C ecommerce portals.

China Wholesale (http://www.chinavasion.com/) market veteran, Chinavasion.com congratulated Alibaba on their launch:

"AliExpress is an example of a large public-listed company fearlessly diversifying into unfamiliar waters," said Rose Li, Chinavasion.com Public Relations Spokesperson. "As the first website to offer direct-from-China wholesale, Chinavasion.com would like to wish Alibaba the best of luck in their new startup."

Chinavasion was the first company, in 2005, to offer wholesale electronics sent from warehouse stock in China to international buyers. I will cover ChinaVasion in later.

Alibaba,com enables Chinese sellers to advertise to buyers, with 8.6 million registered users, but the AliExpress website is a fresh launch in the style of a dot-com startup.

The new AliExpress website is found on the main Alibaba.com domain, but represents a major departure from Alibaba's core business, according to Chinavasion's Rose Li:

"The main Alibaba.com is essentially an advertising website: no deals are transacted. AliExpress is different. It's ecommerce with international shipping, and that's 100% new business territory for the Alibaba group."

Chinavasion's Rose Li drew a clear distinction between the AliExpress service and Chinavasion:

"Chinavasion is a true wholesaler. Products advertised on Chinavasion.com are all real products in our warehouse stock. Products advertised on AliExpress, on the other hand, are from thousands of different small Chinese suppliers and are not guaranteed to be in stock."

According to the statement on AliExpress website, Alibaba will guarantee order fulfillment under an escrow arrangement. This will be the first international test of Alibaba's proprietary AliPay online payments system, already widely recognized within Mainland China as a payment method for the Alibaba group's eBay-style auction website Taobao, and a would-be competitor to eBay's Paypal system.

What is unclear, commentators point out, is whether Alibaba will take a leaf out of Paypal and EBay's book and provide strong buyer guarantees. Chinavasion's Rose Li commented:

"Will buyers get what they want from AliExpress? Each supplier you find in AliExpress will have their own concepts of acceptable quality and speed. Since the goods are neither sold nor shipped by Alibaba themselves, the burden will still fall to the buyer to investigate and test each and every different supplier in the system before trusting them with orders."

Alibaba.com Purchased back Alisoft Assets for $30m

2009-11-21T18:46:00.001+08:00

Alibaba Group has agreed to inject the Business Management Software (BMS) division of its wholly-owned software subsidiary, Alisoft, into the Information Technology Business Unit of its majority-owned subsidiary Alibaba.com (1688.HK) for total compensation of $30.5 million (RMB 208 million) by September 1, according to an August 17 announcement.

Alibaba.com intends to acquire Alisoft's major application software product lines for small businesses, all customer contracts and more than 250 BMS division employees. Alisoft's non-management-software-related core technologies will be among the assets remaining under Alibaba Group ownership, said the announcement.

The announcement also said, Alibaba.com is planning to leverage its sales and marketing organization to boost sales of Alisoft's customer relationship management and marketing software, .

This is the first time, one of the biggest b2b marketplaces, Alibaba.com has acquired assets from its parent in a move to supplement its product offerings and generate new sources of revenue. The transfer of business management software division comprises application software product lines for small businesses, customer contracts and employees, it said. After the closing of the acquisition by Sept. 1, 2009 the business management software division, with more than 250 employees, has been integrated with Alibaba.com's Information Technology Business Unit.

Alibaba.com said it will leverage its sales and marketing organization to increase the sale of Alisoft's customer relationship management and marketing software for exporters and small businesses engaged in domestic trade.

"The addition of these software offerings and related services continues Alibaba.com's drive to transform ourselves from "Meet at Alibaba to Work at Alibaba" by offering small businesses the tools to manage key aspects of their business operations via the Internet," said David Wei, chief executive officer of Alibaba.com, in a statement.

CLSA analyst Elinor Leung said the deal is small and it won't have much impact on Alibaba's business. "Even before this deal, Alibaba.com has been offering Alisoft's software services to its customers," said Leung. "What really matters is the market response."

Alibaba Group has already announced its merger of research and development division into Alisoft on July 22 2009.

Global Sources IR Reports Q2 2009 Results

2009-11-21T18:37:00.000+08:00

Posted GAAP EPS of $0.11 and Non-GAAP EPS of $0.15
Increased cash and securities to $143.7 million with no debt

NEW YORK, Aug. 17 Global Sources Ltd., one of the largest b2b marketplaces reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2009.

Chairman and CEO for Global Sources, Merle A. Hinrichs, said: "As anticipated, during the quarter 2 Global Sources business continued to be affected by the slowdown in exports from mainland China and the rest of Asia. As such, we managed the business prudently, delivering profit of $5.1 million on revenue of $54.2 million as well as improving our already robust balance sheet.

"We continue to focus on addressing our customers' core needs by providing a complete product offering of online, trade shows and print that addresses all stages of the buying process. Although we are carefully managing our costs, we are also focused on enhancing our overall market position to achieve top and bottom line growth when the economic environment improves," concluded Hinrichs.

Global Sources Q2: Financial highlights

Second quarter: 2009 compared to 2008
Revenue was $54.2 million, compared to $63.7 million
Online revenue was $22.0 million, compared to $24.1 million
Exhibitions revenue was $24.0 million, compared to $25.3 million
Print revenue was $7.1 million, compared to $12.8 million
Revenue from mainland China was $39.3 million, compared to $42.0 million
GAAP net income was $5.1 million, or $0.11 per diluted share, which included a non-cash stock based compensation (SBC) expense of $1.7 million based on the June 30, 2009 stock price of $7.21. For the second quarter of 2008, GAAP net income was $8.4 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, which included a $1.5 million in non-cash SBC expense based on the June 30, 2008 stock price of $15.18
Non-GAAP net income was $6.8 million, or $0.15 per diluted share, compared to $9.9 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2008
Total deferred income and customer prepayments were $72.8 million as at June 30, 2009, compared to $86.8 million as at June 30, 2008. Global Sources' non-GAAP metrics

Management believes non-GAAP metrics are useful measures of operations and provides GAAP to non-GAAP reconciliation tables at the end of this press release. Global Sources defines non-GAAP net income as net income excluding non-cash, stock-based compensation (SBC) expense or credit, gains or losses on acquisitions and investments, and/or impairment charges, for all historical and future references to non-GAAP metrics. Non-GAAP EPS is defined as non-GAAP net income divided by the weighted average of diluted common shares outstanding.

Global Sources Q2: Financial highlights

Six Months Ended June 30: 2009 compared to 2008
Revenue was $89.0 million, compared to $104.3 million
GAAP net income was $6.3 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, compared to $16.6 million, or $0.32 per diluted share
Non-GAAP net income was $8.5 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, compared to $16.5 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, for the six months ended June 30, 2008

Global Sources' CFO, David Gillan, said: "Although revenue continues to be challenged, we are managing the business through this cycle with the objective of continued profitability. Regarding costs, we reduced discretionary spending and delayed infrastructure investments. As a result, total operating expenses declined by 9% in the second quarter, as compared to the same period last year.

"In the second quarter, we grew our cash position to $143.7 million and continued to benefit from a strong balance sheet that includes no short-term or long-term bank debt. In the third quarter of 2009, we anticipate revenue and earnings to continue to be impacted by the difficult economic situation, and those results will be compared to a very strong third quarter in 2008."

Global Sources Q2: Recent Corporate Highlights

GlobalSources held China Sourcing Fairs in Dubai in June. The event featured over 1,100 booths, representing 40% growth compared to last year
Held six China Sourcing Fairs and an India Sourcing Fair in April and early May at the AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong. Many of the world's top buying organizations attended including Carrefour, Coles Group, Dollar General, LG Sourcing, Li & Fung, Marks & Spencer, Otto International, Samsung, Sears, Staples and The Home Depot.
Twenty-four group and custom Private Sourcing Events were held in June and July in mainland China, India, Russia and Vietnam. Participating buyers included A.R.E.N.A., Atico, Auto Audio Center, BTK, Casino, Groupe Adeo, El Corte Ingles, ICA, M. Video, LPP, Lowe's, Pacific Brands, RadioShack, Rolsen, Sears, Test Rite, The Home Depot and ThreeSixty Sourcing.
Appointed David Gillan as Chief Financial Officer effective July 1, following the retirement of Eddie Heng. Mr. Heng remains on the board as a director.

Achieved record lead generation, which is measured as requests for information (RFIs) from buyers to suppliers through Global Sources Online. There were more than 81 million RFIs during the 12 months ended June 30, 2009, up by 124% compared to the same period last year.

Increased independently certified community of Global Sources activebuyers to more than 829,000 at the end of the second quarter, 14% higher than the same time last year. Conference call for Global Sources second quarter 2009 earnings

Alibaba Group to display Koubei.com ads on Taobao.com

2009-11-21T18:27:00.000+08:00

HONG KONG -(Dow Jones)- Alibaba Group, which is 39% owned by Yahoo Inc. (YHOO), said Friday it has injected its classified listing Web site Koubei.com into its Chinese online retail site Taobao.com.

Alibaba Group spokesman John Spelich said the asset injection is part of the company's "Big Taobao Strategy" to transform Taobao into a one-stop platform for shopping, socializing and information sharing.

Koubei.com, a company providing online classified listings for local services, is wholly owned and operated by b2b marketplaces giant Alibaba Group.

Taobao is an online platform on which consumers can sell goods to each other and directly to businesses, similar to U.S.-based platforms eBay and Amazon.

Alibaba is Planning to Invest $200 Million On Acquisitions

2009-11-03T20:53:00.002+08:00

In the time when businesses all over the world are facing financial crisis, world's largest B2B marketplace, Alibaba Group has announced $200 million to spend on acquisitions over next few years. In an interview to Wall Streen Journal (WSJ), Wei Zhan who is leading the investment unit of Alibaba said they have already spent $73 million and are expecting $200 million in coming few years.

Alibaba has so far shown its interest in industries inlcuding mobile applications like they recently invested in UCWEB Technology for its mobiile web browser, in Alipay for electronic payment system and in some other areas. So far their investments are limited to mainland China but in recent visit to USA, Alibaba showed its interest in investments for foreign companies.

Related News:

Alibaba.com Q2 net profit slips 34 pct, beats view of Analysts

2009-11-01T22:55:00.003+08:00

SHANGHAI, Aug 13 (Reuters) - China's top e-commerce firm, Alibaba.com (1688.HK), said on Thursday its quarterly net profit fell 34.2 percent, but it beat analysts' expectations, as margins sank amid slowing business during the global downturn.

Alibaba's net profit for the second quarter came in at 260.7 million yuan ($38.15 million) versus 396.5 million yuan a year earlier. A poll of five analysts by Reuters Estimates expected the firm's net profit to come in at 224.8 million yuan.

Alibaba said its operating profit came in at 287.7 million yuan. Alibaba, which operates an online site connecting millions of buyers and sellers, said the fall in profit was due to high personnel and research and development costs.

For Q2 results in detail: http://img.alibaba.com/ir/download/200908/E_2QResultsAnnouncement_final.pdf

Alibaba Aims for Chinese Input Software in 2009

2009-10-31T16:44:00.002+08:00

According to a company insider, Alibaba Group is working on Chinese-language input software that may be released in 2009, reports Sohu. Now under development by Alibaba's subsidiary Alisoft, the software will include professional terms popularized by Alibaba Group subsidiaries, said the insider. Alibaba public relations refused to comment, the report said.

As experienced by author of B2B-Trade-International Blog, Chinese input softwares are quite famous in China and because of these Pinyin softwares the communication has made possible between Chinese speaking professionals and English speaking people worldwide.

Alibaba to Launch Search Engine in Beijing

2009-10-31T16:41:00.002+08:00

HANGZHOU, Aug 07, 2009 (SinoCast Daily Business Beat via COMTEX) Alibaba.com Limited (SEHK: 1688), a business-to-business (B2B) marketplace operator in China, is researching its search engine in Beijing, an insider from the Hangzhou-headquartered e-commerce firm disclosed on August 6, 2009.

According to news the search engine by Alibaba, will focus on B2B and business-to-customer (B2C) search and will not compete head on head with Baidu, Inc. or Google Inc.

In the beginning of this July 2009, Alibaba was rumored to launch its search engine. It was because of the company's relationship with Baidu, guessed industry watchers.

Alibaba gave a shining performance in 2008, as small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) flocked to e-commerce amid the industry recession. Its net profits soared 95% from the previous year to CNY 1.205 billion. Total revenue rose 39% year on year to CNY 3.001 billion. Notably, revenues from its domestic platform amounted to CNY 1.094 billion, hiking 78% year on year.

Alibaba China Adds Social Networking Taojianghu

2009-10-31T16:36:00.002+08:00

China's Alibaba Group has started mixing social-networking functions into its leading e-commerce platforms, a move it hopes will convince users to spend more time and money on Alibaba Group Websites.

Alibaba is crafting social-networking platforms specifically to complement two of its core operations. The beta version of a Web site with Facebook-style applications and a Twitter-style feed is being grafted onto Taobao.com, a Alibaba's auction and retail Web site, a spokeswoman said. A more professional platform that the spokeswoman likened to LinkdIn is being added to Alibaba.com, the group's business-to-business e-commerce operation.

The entertainment-based platform for Taobao in particular combines standard social-networking functions with original features that promote online purchases. It goes a step beyond efforts to mix e-commerce and social networking by Western companies like Amazon.com and Facebook, said Benjamin Joffe, CEO of digital strategy and research company +8* (Plus Eight Star).

Western companies could potentially benefit by adding social functions like those on the Taobao platform, but the site is also uniquely suited for China's young Internet user base, he said.

Taobao designed the platform, called Taojianghu, to provide services that relate to online shopping but could also encourage users to form groups around shared interests. A main goal was to build stronger ties among consumers on Taobao, said Mi Fengtao, Taobao's team head for development of Taojianghu.

"Taobao users have many demands outside of making online purchases," he said.

Taobao, like eBay in the U.S., lets users sell items at auction or in online stores, and some of the items most commonly sold include clothing, mobile phones and laptops.

The main page of Taobao's social-networking site presents users with a feed of friends' recent updates and links to games, picture albums, surveys and other applications already common on Facebook and rival Chinese sites. But the site also offers shopping-related applications that let users bookmark items they find on Taobao and ask other users for purchase advice. Users can also post pictures of a number of items they are considering, such as makeup or cameras, and ask friends to vote on which one to buy.

The Taobao platform also rewards frequent users with points that can be turned into coupons for certain purchases from merchants. One way users can earn points is to become an "expert" in a product area, such as iPhones or other gadgets, by writing reviews that other users cite as helpful.

E-commerce, already huge, is ascending rapidly in China. Online shopping transactions were worth 46.7 billion yuan (US$6.8 billion) in China in the first quarter, nearly twice as much as a year earlier, according to iResearch, a Chinese Internet consultancy.

Over three-quarters of that transaction value occurred among consumers on Taobao, according to the iResearch statistics.

Taobao's dominance gives its social-networking platform a sizable user base to draw on. All Taobao users can also access the platform, which has some user activity but that Taobao says it has not begun promoting yet. Taobao reported 120 million registered users at the end of the first quarter, more than one-third of China's total number of people online.

Amazon and Facebook have also looked to combine elements of social networking and e-commerce. Amazon's "Wish List" lets users create and share lists of items they would like to receive as gifts, encouraging shopping on the site. Facebook two years ago attempted to introduce Beacon, an advertising system that shared information about users' activities on e-commerce and other sites. The program came under fire for privacy concerns and Facebook later allowed users to disable it.

Taobao's efforts may have more success, partly because users will enter its social-networking platform knowing that it is based on an e-commerce site, said Joffe, the analyst.

"They don't need to explain too much to their users," said Joffe. "It will feel very natural because commerce is what Taobao is all about in the first place. They are just adding social features to do it better."

The young majority in China's base of Internet users has caused online games, entertainment and instant-messaging applications to grow faster then e-commerce in the country, Joffe said. Taobao is now drawing on those proven products to drive its own expansion. It was the first large e-commerce site to offer instant messaging, and social networking is a natural next step for its expansion, said Joffe.

Nearly two-thirds of China's Internet users are under 30 years old, according to the country's domain registry agency.

Future additions to Taobao's social-networking platform could include ads in applications and links to suggested items in merchant stores, said Mi of Taobao. The site could also aim to attract new users from outside Taobao by offering unrelated services, such as online reservations for movie tickets or karaoke sessions, Mi said. Those users might then migrate to Taobao itself, he said.

Courtesy: PCWorld - Business Center

Alibaba Launches Ad Campaign to Encourage Fresh Entrepreneurs

2009-10-31T01:16:00.002+08:00

According to news, Alibaba.com has started a new marketing campaign that includes TV, print and online media as it targets small business owners and entrepreneurs. This campaign has been started with new microsite main for USA audience as success.alibaba.com. Initially, three videos "mocumentaries" greet visitors to the b2b website with entertaining stories of how fresh entrepreneurs used Alibaba.com to find suppliers and manufacturers to help them launch their businesses. Thirty-second television ads are running on CNBC and during ABC's new show, Shark Tank, and print ads are running in magazines including Inc., Fast Company, Women's Wear Daily and Purchasing.com.

Kelly Sang, General Manager of Alibaba.com for United States of America, said the new version of the microsite is designed to deliver an approachable, fun and engaging brand character by featuring more rich media contents with a focus on three key stories, each one telling the story of a character who uses Alibaba.com to "Find It, Make It or Sell It."

Alibaba.com is a B2B marketplace, bringing small businesses and entrepreneurs together with suppliers and manufacturers from around the world. When Ms. Sang from Aliababa was asked about how Alibaba.com came up with the campaign to bring the company's message to a broader audience, She said

"We conducted primary research with small business owners and entrepreneurs nationwide to really get a sense for what they are facing in today's marketplace and how Alibaba.com can help them compete. One of our key takeaways was that they were looking for new resources to help them achieve their goals. They were energized by the idea that they could "be like the big guys" on a global scale via Alibaba.com.

We then set out to create a campaign that would be visually refreshing for the B2B market and better explain who Alibaba.com is and how it can help their business. To do that, we created fictional characters that were indicative of the type of success businesses have created after finding the right partner on Alibaba.com - for pieces and parts, full scale production, or simply buying products directly from manufacturers to resell. Our central theme is just that - find the right partner for your business. We feel that this U.S. Brand expression of Alibaba.com also fits that theme - it's the right fit to meet the needs of modern entrepreneurs and small business owners.

The U.S. branding campaign by Alibaba.com is specifically to target small business owners and fresh entrepreneurs. These audiences have always been very important to us, and we're now taking our commitment to them to the next level with the launch of this campaign."

Alibaba previously has launched several campaigns that have given our members to achieve success. The message to entrepreneurs, Sang said further, is to "draw up your business plan. Lock down your prototype. And get on Alibaba.com to make it happen."

In addition to the character stories, the U.S. microsite of Alibaba.com features expanded training content, including live instructor-led webinars, quick-learn videos, quick tips and links to additional learning resources. An events and partnership page focuses on upcoming Alibaba.com events of interest to U.S. entrepreneurs and partnership deals for site users.

Alibaba Subchannel to Promo Exhibition Hall Shanghai Mart

2009-10-31T01:11:00.002+08:00

Alibaba.com (1688.HK) entered a partnership on August 6 2009 to establish a subchannel on its professional market channel for exhibition hall Shanghai Mart. According to news, Alibaba is planning to connect information in the new channel to the TrustPass pages especially of Shanghai Mart clients.

FYI: Shanghai Mart is a year-round offline exhibition hall in Shanghai's Hongqiao special economic zone that provides exhibition, trade and office space to retailers.

China Exports May Rise in Fourth Quarter Says Alibaba

2009-10-15T08:42:00.002+08:00

Shanghai on Aug 3, 2009, Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba, David Wei showed speculation about the rise of China exports in the fourth quarter.

The operator of China’s biggest trading Web site, Alibaba.com, which helps Chinese businesses find overseas buyers, has seen a “noticeable” recovery in orders, especially from North America, Wei said at a press briefing today. Fourth-quarter exports will either be unchanged or increase “by single digits” from a year earlier, he said.

China’s overseas shipments fell 21.4 percent in June from a year earlier as the global recession cut demand for the shoes, toys and electronics of the world’s second-biggest exporter. The government’s 4 trillion yuan ($585 billion) stimulus package helped revive economic growth to 7.9 percent in the second quarter from 6.1 percent in the first.

North America accounts for about 19 percent of Alibaba.com’s overseas users, with almost all of those in the U.S., Wei said today. About 11 percent of users outside of China are in India, 8 percent to 9 percent in the U.K. and about 5.5 percent in Japan, he said.

“We probably have more confidence than even President Obama has for a recovery in the U.S.,” Wei said. Alibaba’s statistics for overseas orders are usually reflected in trade data from China’s customs bureau three to six months later, he said.

Alibaba knew in the second quarter of last year that China’s trade figures for the fourth quarter of 2008 would be “ugly,” Wei said today. Jack Ma, Alibaba’s chairman, sent a memo to the company’s employees warning of an “economic winter” in July of last year.

Alibaba to split its Domestic & International Marketplace Operations

2009-10-13T08:51:00.001+08:00

Alibaba Group in August 2009 announced to separate its business divisions. According to news they have split their operations for domestic and international marketplaces.

Alibaba has also setup two divisions to help small & medium size enterprise customers to gain access to information technology and employees trained to handle e-commerce. Alibaba has already announced it agreement with Bank of China to facilitate loans of 6 billion Yuan for small and medium sized enterprises.

Alibaba has also planned to work more closely with its online retail and trading website similar to amazon and eBay, Taobao.com.

According to memo released in late July 2009, Mr. Wei will remain as chief executive and also serve as acting head of the domestic marketplace of Alibaba. Elvis Lee, who was hired as chief operating officer in February 2009, will head the international division.

Also, following the reorganization, the domestic marketplace will develop a sourcing channel for companies selling their goods on Taobao. Taobao will remain an independent company under the parent group, merely stepping up its operational cooperation with Alibaba.com.

Alibaba Seeks to Form Joing Venture firm in India

2009-10-12T18:09:00.002+08:00

SHANGHAI, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Chief executive David Wei of Alibaba.com said on Monday that they are considering setting up a joint venture company in India to manage its B2B platform, .

Alibaba.com is currently in partnership with India's Infomedia 18, a publishing outsourcing firm, to help Alibaba with customer service and sales and marketing.

Wei also told reporters on the sidelines of a news conference that they are currently talking with them, it will definitely be a joint venture, and Alibaba does not seek to be a controlling stakeholder.

India is Alibaba's second-largest overseas market by member base, with 1 million members.

Alibaba.com also launched on Monday an expansion of its loan programme to help small to medium enterprises in Shanghai, Zhejiang province and Hangzhou city.

The programme, which aims to offer 6 billion yuan ($878.3 million) in loans by the end of 2009, will be run by Alibaba.com and China Construction Bank.

Wei said in a statement that he expects the programme to become available in Beijing, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Guangdong province and Jiangsu province by the end of the year.

China Construction Bank, Alibaba.com and the three regional governments will set up a loan reserve pool of 60 million yuan in each region to serve as a guarantee for the loans. The pool will distribute the risk of bad debts evenly among the three parties.

Alibaba and Bank of China partnered via Alipay online payment system

2009-10-09T17:13:00.002+08:00

Thursday, 23-July-2009, Alibaba Group announced about its collaboration with Bank of China for expanding its international business development and domestic programs.

Earlier this year, senior Alibaba executives visited Silicon Valley, where they met with market giants includes Google, eBay and Amazon.com in order to discuss discuss about the possible partnerships. Alibaba also showed its interest to bring its C2C website, Taobao and its payment platforms, Alipay to the US market.

Alibaba's deal with the Bank of China will give its online payment service, Alipay, a vital growth as Alibaba will now allow Bank of China customers to make transactions in foreign currency through this platform.

Alipay will also allow Bank of China to offer currency conversion for international trade, which could encourage sales between foreign and Chinese traders. Partnership with Paypal is also under discussion.

Alibaba will also work with Bank of China to expand a loan program for Chinese SMEs. This program is expected to facilitate 6 billion yuan (US$880 million) in loans this year, gives vendors credit ratings based partly on their Alibaba transaction history.

Alibaba appoints Truly London for brand push in EMEA

2009-08-08T13:55:00.002+08:00

LONDON - Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com has appointed UK-based Truly London as its lead creative agency in Europe, the Middle East and Africa as part of its US$30 million strategy to promote its brand internationally.

Truly London won the account following a three-way pitch. It has been charged with managing Alibaba’s creative, brand advertising and media buying in EMEA as part of the company’s year-long global marketing campaign.

The account will be managed out of the agency’s London and Bahrain offices. It forms part of Alibaba.com’s $30m (£18.3m) year-long global marketing investment.

Alibaba Group announced in October that it would launch an integrated campaign across 20 countries to bolster its international presence, focusing on key markets Australia, Europe, Hong Kong, the UK and the US.

A representative at the time said the campaign would include online, TV, print, radio, outdoor elements and live events.

Maggie Choo, director of Alibaba.com EMEA says it has already built a base of 2.5 million members across the region and it is growing by an average of 66% per year.

“However, with an estimated 23 million SMEs in Europe alone we see significant scope for helping many more small businesses across the region with cross-border trade,” said Choo.

Alibaba invests USD100 mln in Chengdu China

2009-08-08T13:48:00.002+08:00

Chinese B2B e-commerce group Alibaba has signed a cooperative agreement with Chengdu Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone on its new western base project, making Chengdu the first stop for the group's domestic distribution apart from its Zhejiang headquarters.

Under the agreement, Alibaba will invest USD100 million to build its western base in Chengdu and the business range of this new project will cover relevant services of Alibaba Group's subsidiaries, including Alibaba.com, Taobao.com, Alisoft, Alipay, and Yahoo Koubei. In addition, the base will have various functions such as research, development, background operation, maintenance, disaster recovery, and training.

At the same time, Alisoft, Alibaba's software subsidiary, signed an agreement with Chengdu to open a new operating service center in the city. According to Nong Jiaqing, vice president of Alisoft, the investments in the operating service center will not be included in Alibaba's USD100 million investments in Chengdu. The new project is expected to start operation in July 2009.

The Chengdu base will operate all types of business that Alibaba runs, including R&D, its call center, background operations and maintenance, operation settlement and training.

Alibaba will begin by settling in the city's Tianfu Software Park, then determine which site is best to host its base, which upon completion is expected to provide more than 100,000 jobs.

In return, the municipal government of Chengdu gives full support to Alisoft's new project and local small and medium-sized enterprises which use Alisoft's software will gain a subsidy of CNY1,500.

Alibaba IM Tool Records 4M Users

2009-08-08T13:45:00.002+08:00

Alibaba Group's software subsidiary Alisoft has recorded more than 4 million independent users for its instant messaging (IM) tool, "Ali Wang Wang," reports Ccidnet.com. Ali Wang Wang offers nearly 400 Software as a Service (SaaS) products, said the report. At the end of last year, Alisoft reported having exceeded 100 million users on Ali Wang Wang.

Alisoft signed a cooperation agreement with Nanjiang Yuhua Economic Development Zone Committee July 3 to invest more than RMB 50 million in an internet software park in Nanjing, Chengdu Daily reported. Enterprises setting up in the park will be offered preferential tax incentives, funding support and office equipment, the report said.

Recent news about Ali Wang Wang:

Online Games on Alibaba IM Tool

2009-07-18T06:12:00.002+08:00

Alibaba Group's software subsidiary Alisoft President Wang Tao confirmed June 25 that its instant messaging (IM) tool "Ali Wang Wang" is trialing small online games, qq.com reports. According to Wang, the games are not internally developed and are not a major business focus for Ali Wang Wang. He added that Alibaba will not enter the MMORPG business.

Recent Ali Wang Wang related news:

Ali Wang Wang - Alibaba IM Tool Enters Online Ad Market

Jack Ma Interview on India's CNBC-TV18

2009-07-18T06:06:00.003+08:00

New Delhi – 22 June 2009 – Alibaba.com founder and chairman Jack Ma was in India celebrating the 1 million member milestone for Alibaba.com in India.

While he was there he sat down with CNBC TV18 executive director and well known anchor, Shereen Bhan, to share "Lessons in Excellence" to a studio audience full of local SME members of Alibaba.com.

Interview video might take a few seconds to load.

Alibaba.com celebrated 1 million SME members in India

2009-07-18T05:43:00.005+08:00

Alibaba.com, the world’s largest B2B e-commerce company, announced on June 22, 2009 that it has surpassed 1 million members from India alone. With more than 40,000 Indian small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) joining every month, Alibaba.com’s global online marketplace (www.alibaba.com) has doubled its Indian membership from around 500,000 in May 2008 to more than 1 million members by May 31, 2009. Indian SMEs now account for 12 percent of all registered users on Alibaba.com’s international marketplace, making it the second largest international market after the United States.

At a special event to celebrate the 1 million member milestone, Mr. Sanjeev Gogna from Manam Exports, the one millionth member from India, was presented with a commemorative plaque by Alibaba.com founder and chairman Jack Ma and Alibaba.com CEO David Wei.

“India is a unique and very important market for us because it has a large SME population and both a robust domestic market and a growing export sector. We grew by 138 percent in India last year and it is now our largest supplier market after China. Our commitment to India is stronger than ever,” said David Wei, CEO of Alibaba.com.

“It is a great honor for me to be the one millionth member of Alibaba.com in India. The site has given me virtual offices all over the world and opened up new markets for my company that I could not have imagined before. I hope that many other Indian businesses can broaden their horizon and join the global marketplace,” said Sanjeev, who is one of millions of SMEs around the world that have been turning to online marketplaces to look for trading opportunities both within their own countries and internationally, especially during the current downturn.

Founded in China in 1999, Alibaba.com helps small businesses grow by connecting them with potential customers and trusted suppliers from around the world for every imaginable good, from laptops to wedding dresses to auto engine parts. Alibaba.com has more than 8.6 million registered users on its international marketplace from 240 countries and regions, and saw its membership base grow by 80 percent in 2008.

While much of the developed world is in recession, India’s economy has been reasonably robust thanks to domestic demand. The Indian economy is predicated to grow at a steady rate of 6 percent in 2009 and experts estimate this growth will further accelerate and touch 7 percent in 2010. India’s 13 million SMEs constitute 40 percent of the country’s manufacturing output, accounting for approximately 17 percent of the GDP . Indian SMEs who have traditionally been focused on domestic trade are now gradually moving to exports as access to global markets becomes easier.

“SMEs in India have traditionally looked within their own borders, and often just within their own province, to find trading partners. Online marketplaces now provide local businesses with an easy way to access and participate in the national and global marketplace. Today, around 30 percent of SMEs in India are exporting but their reach is limited, the potential for local businesses to explore new markets is enormous. Alibaba.com is launching an export-focused platform that will offer 100 percent of Indian SMEs the opportunity to get into the export sector,” Wei concluded.

Gold Supplier: Gateway to global trade from India

On July 1, 2009, Alibaba.com will open its Gold Supplier membership to suppliers in India for the first time. Gold Supplier International Edition is Alibaba.com’s highest level of membership for Indian exporters and will allow them to maximize their exposure to overseas buyers. Gold Supplier International Edition members will enjoy many of the same features as their Greater China counterparts, including first-level priority listings with a Gold Supplier logo and product showcases. All suppliers applying for the membership must pass an authentication and verification process conducted by an independent third-party agency. Trust is the number one issue cited by buyers around the world and it has been proven that 85 percent of buyers using online marketplaces prefer to do business with verified suppliers only .

Alibaba Planning to Expand Alipay Online-Payment Service Internationally

2009-07-18T05:31:00.004+08:00

Alibaba.com is planning to team up with HSBC Holdings plc and Citibank A.S. With this initiative Alibaba might expand online payment service "Alipay" internationally.

According to sources, Alibaba will allow account holders of the two global lenders to pay and transfer funds online via Alipay platform. It is also reported earlier that the Hangzhou-based company plans to cooperate with MasterCard Incorporated and Visa Inc to launch an internationalized Alipay settlement platform.

Alipay Joins Maru Japan

2009-07-04T03:21:00.002+08:00

Alibaba Group's online payment tool Alipay began providing payment services for the Chinese language online store of Japanese department store Marui Co. Ltd. (maruione.jp/cn/) on June 15, reports China.com. The Chinese site is offering free delivery for orders placed between June 15-30 and a 1,000-yen coupon for those who register during the period.

Vietnam, Alibaba Group sign e-commerce deal

2009-07-04T03:12:00.004+08:00

The Vietnam Industry, Vietnam Trade Information Center and Alibaba Group, the world’s largest e-commerce company, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on organizing and developing e-commerce in Vietnam.

As per the agreement, the goods manufacturers & suppliers in Vietnam will be registered on Alibaba.com for more business opportunities from around the world.

Vietnamese companies can also apply for special “Gold Supplier” recognition for better exposure on the b2b website.

Representatives of the Vietnam Industry and Trade Information Center under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said the project would help businesses, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises, access the international market more easily and effectively.

Ali Wang Wang - Alibaba IM Tool Enters Online Ad Market

2009-06-28T09:00:00.002+08:00

"Ali Wang Wang," the instant messaging (IM) tool of Alibaba Group's software subsidiary Alisoft, announced Tuesday June 9 that it has entered the online ad market by launching a platform that will target IM users with customized advertising, reports Sina. An Alisoft representative denied speculation that it is developing a new profit model through advertising. In the past, Alisoft was cautious about online ads and user experience; now, however, IM users and client requests have reached a sufficient amount, said a related employee.

Ali Wang Wang had recorded 130 million users and more than 70 million monthly active users by late May, according to Alisoft statistics. The IM tool had more than 100 million registered users in December 2008.

P&G to Open First Online China Store on Taobao Mall

2009-06-09T17:08:00.002+08:00

Procter & Gamble (P&G) (NYSE:PG) kicked off its first online marketing trial in China with the opening of an online store on Taobao Mall, a business-to-consumer service of Alibaba's consumer-focused e-commerce site Taobao.com, reports Beijing Business Today.

The store sells daily necessities like shampoos, lotions and shavers for 20-30% below market price, said the report. P&G previously marketed its products online in South Korea, said the report.

Jack Ma Gives Students 100 Shares of Alibaba.com in Alibaba Annaul Meeting

2009-06-09T16:53:00.002+08:00

Hong Kong – May 7, 2009 – At most annual meetings, the chairman gives out stock advice but today Jack Ma of Alibaba.com surprised 80 business school students with a gift of 100 shares. The students from Chinese University of Hong Kong and the University of Hong Kong were invited to attend Alibaba.com’s second annual general meeting along with 300 shareholders, customers and other guests.

Ma, a former English teacher who founded Alibaba Group a decade ago, told the students he hoped the gift would give them a strong personal incentive to follow not just the performance of Alibaba.com, but also deepen their interest in business and entrepreneurship. The shares came from Alibaba Group and are tradable stock of Alibaba.com.

On Wednesday, Alibaba.com said revenue for the first quarter rose 19 percent to RMB807 million from RMB680 million a year earlier. The company’s total number of Chinese exporter customers jumped 96% year on year to 55,810 on the introduction of its new entry-level product Gold Supplier Starter Pack and registered users topped 40 million.

Global Sources to participate with Pacific Brands in Private Sourcing Event

2009-06-09T16:11:00.004+08:00

Jun 01, 2009 - Global Sources (Nasdaq:GSOL), a business-to-business media company and a primary facilitator of trade with Greater China, has announced that Pacific Brands (Australia:PBG), Australia based marketer and importer of consumer goods, met pre-screened mainland China suppliers at the company's Custom Private Sourcing Event in Xiamen held on 19 May 2009. Private Sourcing Events are part of the company's portfolio of brands for sourcing and product information services, which include Global Sources Online, China Sourcing Fairs and Global Sources monthly magazines.

Pacific Brands, which represents brands in Australia, including Berlei, Bonds, Clarks (children's), Dunlop, Everlast, Grosby, Holeproof, Hush Puppies, King Gee, Mooks, Mossimo, Sheridan, Slazenger, Sleepmaker, Tontine and Yakka, had sales of over USD1.63bn in 2008.

According to Adrian Barratt, general manager of Pacific Brands (Asia), the sourcing event was useful as the company was able to meet suppliers with different backgrounds in an organised manner, and this supported its sourcing strategy.

With the participation in the Private Sourcing event, Pacific Brands has reportedly opened trade opportunities to suppliers of baby wear, work wear and men's and women's underwear.

Global Sources said that over 100 Private Sourcing Events are planned for 2009, with buyers including Carrefour, Tesco (LSE:TSCO), Metro and The Home Depot (NYSE:HD) scheduled to participate.

All Private Sourcing Events are complimentary for buyers and only Global Sources suppliers are eligible to participate.

Global Sources to Expand Dubai Shows in 2009

2009-05-29T19:10:00.003+08:00

Global Sources expands 2009 Dubai shows 40% to include Greater China manufacturers of gifts, premiums, home products, electronics and fashion accessories DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 21

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 21 - Global Sources (Nasdaq: GSOL) announced that its four upcoming China Sourcing Fairs in Dubai have sold out, growing 40% this year to reach over 1,100 booths. The China Sourcing Fairs: Electronics, Fashion Accessories, Gifts & Premiums, and Home Products will feature manufacturers from Greater China (mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan). The events will be held June 14 - 16, 2009, at the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Alibaba.com Partners on Turkish Logo Group

2009-05-23T06:03:00.003+08:00

HONG KONG (Dow Jones)--Alibaba.com Ltd. (1688.HK) said Wednesday it formed a strategic alliance with Turkish software developer Logo Group, which will help it expand in Turkey.

As part of the agreement, Logo will help Alibaba.com build its brand in Turkey and become a reseller of Alibaba.com product Gold Supplier international. Logo-operated corporate social networking site Diyalogo will also co-promote Alibaba.com to its users.

Alibaba.com already has about 200,000 registered users in Turkey. It said its user base in Turkey grew nearly 75% in the last 12 months. Alibaba.com also intends to extend its Gold Supplier membership to suppliers in Turkey in July and, for a limited time, upgrade existing Turkey-based International TrustPass members to Gold Supplier international service for free.

The company said Turkey is an attractive market for online business-to-business services because of its growing domestic market of 70 million people, its large manufacturing sector and an Internet population estimated at 30 million.

Logo's flagship company has 150,000 customers and 1 million active users, most of which are local small and medium-sized enterprises.

Alibaba.com to turn Alipay into International Online Payment Platform

2009-05-23T06:02:00.000+08:00

May 11, 2009 (China Knowledge) - China's Alibaba.com Ltd <1688>, the world's largest online B2B marketplace, plans to team up with HSBC Holdings plc and Citibank A.S. as it aims to turn its Alipay unit into an international online payment platform, sources reported. The company will allow account holders of the two global lenders to pay and transfer funds online via Alipay platform.

Alibaba to Invest $12M in Mobile Software - Rumor

2009-05-12T05:07:00.005+08:00

According to an unnamed insider, Alibaba Group has agreed to invest $12 million in Guangzhou-based mobile browser developer UCWeb to build a mobile Internet e-commerce company, reports ChinaByte. A UCWeb marketing department employee said the company has heard of the rumor, but that the rumor had not yet received confirmation from company management, reports DoNews. The employee said the company will announce details if there are further developments. Alibaba has not confirmed the news, said the report.

Alibaba recently issued an internal document announcing the establishment of a fund management company that will be led by Libra Capital founder and former CEO Xiong Xiong to target the secondary market.

Alibaba's online payment tool Alipay confirmed May 4 that the company will begin promoting mobile payment services this year, according to a Sina report.

Tradekey Launched “Buy Now” Feature

2009-05-07T19:53:00.004+08:00

Tradekey, a famous B2B marketplace, has just launched Buy Now feature on its official website, Tradekey.com. The feature seems to facilitate buyers to buy directly from the sellers. Unlike, DHGate & Alibaba’s Super Deals, Tradekey.com is not offering ESCROW services right now.

They are simply displaying products information along with the price per quantity suggested by the seller, shipping methods and a couple of product images. The Buy Now feature on tradekey.com seems to be in testing level. A couple of sellers have been selected for pilot project.

How “Buy Now” works on Tradekey.com?

When a buyer clicks on “buy now” button, it takes him to product detail page where buyer can view more information about the product and can enter the desired quantity. The quantity shouldn’t be less than the minimum quantity mentioned by seller. Fill in the desired contact information and click “Buy Now” to proceed to the next step. Unlike DHGate, Tradekey doesn’t display many details about the product. Buyer will have to contact seller, for further information.

On this step two emails are generated from Tradekey.com, 1 for the buyer as acknowledgment and the other to the seller. Here the actual communication between the seller & the buyer starts.
On “Thank you” page, Paypal link of the seller’s Paypal account is displayed. Tradekey so far is not taking any responsibility of the payments or the products. Buyer pays directly to sellers.

So far no information has been received from Tradekey.com about “Buy Now” feature. The success of this feature can be determined if more sellers are opt into this feature and Tradekey continues to deliver the services.

New look of B2B-Trade-International Blog

2009-04-29T17:41:00.002+08:00

Hello All,

B2B-Trade-International is now in all new look and feel. Do let me know about your thoughts.

Why did B2B Trade International change its look?

I know the nature of my blog, its quite boring. I always seek ways to add something to keep the interest of valued readers. I hope you guys will find this new look a little more energizing and dynamic. Do let me know if there are some better templates available online.

Thanks for visiting B2B Trade International. Special thanks to followers & subscribers.

regards,

Babar Hussain
B2B Trade International

Alibaba, Guangdong Hold Online Merchant Trade Fair

2009-04-28T19:50:00.002+08:00

Hangzhou-based e-commerce company Alibaba Group will join the Guangdong provincial and Guangzhou municipal governments to hold China's first online merchant trade fair on May 16, reports 163.com. The event operator said 1,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will participate in the fair, with 30,000 Taobao, Alibaba Group's consumer-focus e-commerce site, sellers in attendance to purchase goods from the SMEs. Twenty thousand companies that accept online payment service from Alibaba Group's Alipay will also be in attendance, said the operator.

Fifty thousand people, including 30,000 college graduates, are expected to seek jobs and business opportunities during the event at which high-ranking Taobao sellers will recruit 2,000 customer service representatives, the report said.

Alibaba's "Japan Express" is Now Available

2009-04-26T21:21:00.002+08:00

Alibaba.com Japan, a joint venture between business-to-business e-commerce company Alibaba.com (1688.HK) and Softbank Corp, officially launched its new paid product, "Ali Zhong Ri Tong" ("Ali's China-Japan Express") on April 17, reports eNet.com.cn. Local partnerships have put nearly 100,000 products on the Alibaba.com Japan site, said Alibaba.com Japan Chief Operating Officer Sun Jiong. Chinese imports of Japanese products reached $14.7 billion in first two months of 2009 and rose 7.3% month-on-month to $9.48 billion in March, said the report.

Alibaba.com Japan released a trial version of the "Express" product on April 9.

Alibaba VP, Taobao Search Chief Resigns

2009-04-26T21:17:00.002+08:00

Yvonne Chang told Sina on April 23 that she would resign as Alibaba Group vice president and head of the search center at Alibaba's consumer-focused e-commerce site Taobao.com in mid-May after taking leave starting at the beginning of the month. In an internal email reprinted by Sina, Taobao President Jonathan Lu said Chang would leave the company on April 30 for personal reasons. Chang told Sina she made the decision to resign more than a month ago, while Lu indicated that she would eventually return to the company.

According to another Sina report, Taobao's head of advertising and senior researcher for Alibaba Group, Wu Yongming, will assume Chang's post at the search center.

Chang told Sina that the majority of Taobao's revenue comes from pay-for-performance (P4P) search products. In the internal email, Lu said monthly sales revenue from Taobao's P4P products exceeded RMB 1 million in September 2008.

Lu said in the email that Chang organized a team of more than 60 members to optimize Taobao search within six months after the company's merger with Alibaba's online advertising exchange platform Alimama.com, which occurred in September 2008. Chang joined Taobao in January 2008 after having served as vice president of China Yahoo's search business, according to Sina.

Uniqlo partners with Taobao, Alibaba in China

2009-04-18T20:26:00.003+08:00

TOKYO -- Japanese apparel retailer Fast Retailing Co. said Thursday its flagship clothing chain Uniqlo has launched Internet sales in China via a tie-up with online seller Taobao, a unit of Alibaba Group.

Alibaba Group, which is 39%-owned by Yahoo Inc., is the parent company of business-to-business trading platform Alibaba.com Ltd.

Fast Retailing Chief Executive Tadashi Yanai said the tie-up will enable Uniqlo, known for its affordable basic clothing, to tap into Taobao's consumer base. The site, on which users can buy and sell items from each other or from branded stores, has around 100 million registered users, with an annual transaction volume of over $14.6 billion.

Uniqlo, which entered China in 2002, now has 21 stores in that country but a limited online presence. It currently has online sales in South Korea and the U.K.

Uniqlo has 766 stores in Japan and a total of 71 stores overseas, including China, Hong Kong, South Korea, the U.K., the U.S. and France.

Expanding Uniqlo's sales in Asia and other international markets is a key plank of Fast Retailing's strategy for achieving its lofty goal of becoming the world's biggest apparel retailer by sales by 2020. Fast Retailing had revenue in the fiscal first half of about $3.2 billion, with 94% coming from domestic Uniqlo operations. The current apparel leader by revenue is U.S.-based Gap Inc., which reported $14.5 billion in fiscal 2008 sales.

Alibaba Invests $2B to Form Fund Management Company

2009-04-13T23:30:00.002+08:00

Hangzhou-based e-commerce company Alibaba Group said Monday that it has invested $2 billion to establish a fund management company that will be led by Libra Capital founder and former CEO Xiong Xiong and target the secondary market, reports Sina.

Established in late 2007, Libra Capital was later wholly acquired by Alibaba Group. Prior to founding Libra Capital, Xiong managed a $400 million A-shares fund as director of Goldman Sachs Asset Management's research division and the company's Shanghai office representative.

Alibaba.com Japan Releases New Paid Product

2009-04-13T23:29:00.001+08:00

Alibaba.com Japan released a new paid product, "Ali Zhong Ri Tong" ("Ali's China-Japan Express"), targeting users of Alibaba.com's paid "Gold Supplier" service on April 9, reports Today Morning Express. Since it was officially launched on May 15, 2008, Alibaba.com's Japanese site (alibaba.co.jp) has recorded 120,000 members, 1.4 million product listings, 100,000 average daily page views and 500,000 maximum daily page views. Japanese purchasers account for 40% of alibaba.co.jp members.

Alibaba.com Japan is a joint venture between business-to-business e-commerce company Alibaba.com (1688.HK) and Softbank Corp.

Made-in-China.com announced revenues for 2008

2009-04-07T15:33:00.002+08:00

Made-in-China.com, a Nanjing, China based business to business ecommerce company, has announced its revenues for 2008. According to 21st Century Business Herald, 36.7% of in revenues and 37% in year-on-year increased net-profit recorded last year.

With 2 million registered members, Made-in-China is considered as a medium sized b2b website followed by industry giants Alibaba & GlobalSources.

Alisoft to spend $146 mln to market ShopKeeper to 42 mln SMEs in China

2009-04-01T15:59:00.002+08:00

BEIJING, March 31, 2009 /PRNewswire-Asia via COMTEX/ ----Alisoft, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group, today announced that it will offer free Internet-based management software to all 42 million small- and medium-enterprises (SMEs) in China as part of the Group's ongoing effort to make it easy for SMEs to do business using e-commerce.

The software, called "Shopkeeper(TM: 63.44, 0, 0%)", comprises an accounting and finance module in the initial edition to be launched today; an inventory management and a customer relations management module will both be available in May 2009. Shopkeeper(TM: 63.44, 0, 0%) will be free to SME users for at least three years. Apart from the free software license, Alisoft will provide free upgrades, training and customer support for all users. Shopkeeper(TM: 63.44, 0, 0%), a simple-to-use software targeted at key decision makers in SMEs, addresses the need of small business owners who desire to keep track of their money, inventory and customers.

To make Shopkeeper(TM: 63.44, 0, 0%) and other business software widely available to the market, Alisoft will invest up to RMB1 billion over the next three years to cultivate the SME-focused software industry, and further drive usage of Internet-based software, or "software-as-a-service", as a new paradigm of how businesses use technology to manage their operations.

"We are confident that this offering will bring a revolutionary change to how small businesses manage their operations in the coming years. While other traditional software companies have contributed to the market development in the past 20 years, we are hoping to see more new and innovative software companies join hands with us in nurturing the high-potential SME-focused software industry. The free offer signifies an important step we are taking from "Meet at Alibaba" to "Work at Alibaba". Alisoft, together with our parent Alibaba Group, will further forge ahead to build the best e-commerce infrastructure and ecosystem for businesses around the world," said Oliver Wang, President of Alisoft.

According to a report issued by the Center for Informatization Study of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in 2007, just under 5% of SMEs in China are using enterprise resource planning software, which demonstrates the tremendous potential for the business management software industry. Enterprise resource planning software includes a variety of basic, indispensable functions, including accounting, inventory and customer relations management. However, most enterprise management software available in the market is usually designed for large enterprises and is not cost effective for SMEs.

Shopkeeper(TM: 63.44, 0, 0%) is specially designed for business owners, serving as a tool to monitor the business operations and financial status of the business in a way understandable to business owners who do not have technical financial backgrounds. In addition to its accounting and cash flow management functions, the Internet-based software is also enabled via mobile access and allows SMEs to make online payments via Alipay, the online payment solution leader in China and a wholly owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group. Subscribers of Shopkeeper(TM: 63.44, 0, 0%) can also apply for loans under "Ali-Loan", the SME loan- assistance program initiated by Alibaba.com, which is supported by eight major banks in China.

Alibaba to Triple Employees in Taiwan Office

2009-03-26T11:15:00.003+08:00

HANGZHOU, Mar 25, 2009 (SinoCast Daily Business Beat via COMTEX) -- Alibaba.com Limited (SEHK: 1688) is planning to triple employees in its Taiwai office within 2009, said Zhang Ziheng, the company's vice president for global sales.

Thus, the headcount in the business-to-business (B2B) platform operator's Taiwan office is expected to top 100. According to Alibaba they will take 2009 as the "investment year", said the vice president, adding that the company has already decided to spend USD 30 million on marketing advertising in the US and Europe in a bid to help its members sell products to those major destinations.

Alibaba had opened its office in Taiwan in July 2008 in order to serve its 40,000 Taiwan members and growing its business in Taiwan. More in the post "Alibaba.com opens Taiwan Office".

Alibaba.com Year 2008 Results Announced - shares decrease almost 10%

2009-03-21T11:35:00.003+08:00

HONG KONG, March 19, 2009 /PRNewswire-Asia via COMTEX/ ----Alibaba.com Limited (HKSE: 1688) (HK.1688), the world's leading business-to-business e-commerce company, today announced its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2008.

Full Year 2008 Highlights

Total revenue of RMB3.0 billion in 2008, an increase of 39% as compared to 2007. EPS (diluted) was up 31% year-on-year to 26.71 Hong Kong cents and net income (profit attributable to equity owners) was up 25% year- on-year to RMB1.2 billion. Excluding the non-recurring interest income from our initial public offering over-subscription proceeds in 2007, net income was up by 95%.

The number of registered users and online storefronts on Alibaba.com's marketplaces increased by 10.5 million and 1.7 million, respectively, as buyers and sellers around the world saw the benefits of e-commerce to reduce costs and improve efficiency, especially during difficult economic times. New members signed up to our international marketplace in record numbers, with registered users growing by 3.5 million during the year to 7.9 million, up 80% year-on-year. Over one million new members joined our international marketplace during each of the third and fourth quarters of 2008, representing the biggest quarterly increases since Alibaba.com was founded.

We added over 126,000 paying members to our marketplaces in 2008, which exceeded the growth we had in any previous year. We saw a record increase of 12,192 Gold Supplier members in the fourth quarter, driven by the November 2008 launch of our Gold Supplier Starter Pack and an upgrade of our existing Gold Supplier service. These gains were made despite China's export sector experiencing its first negative growth in seven years during the quarter.

Thanks to the strong execution of our entire team and the relatively more robust China economy, our China marketplace contributed 36% of total revenue in 2008, compared to 28% in 2007.

Key Operating Data

As of December 31, 2008, our combined marketplaces had 38.1 million registered users, an increase of 38% year-on-year. We had 7.9 million registered users on our international marketplace and 30.2 million registered users on our China marketplace. In the fourth quarter of 2008, we added one million registered users to our international marketplace and 1.4 million registered users to our China marketplace.

As of December 31, 2008, the total number of storefronts on our marketplaces had grown to 4.6 million, an increase of 56% compared to 2007. Of this total, we had 970,000 storefronts on our international marketplace and 3.6 million storefronts on our China marketplace.

The number of paying members of our combined marketplaces had risen to 432,031 at the end of 2008, an increase of 41% year-on-year.

Citigroup review

“The company expects operating margin to be lower in 2009 compared to 2008,” Citigroup Inc. analyst Jason Brueschke wrote in a report yesterday. He cut his recommendation on Alibaba stock to “sell” from “hold,” and lowered his estimate for the company’s full-year profit this year to 561 million yuan from 785 million yuan.

J.P. Morgan review

Dick Wei, J.P. Morgan analyst, kept his "underweight" rating on the stock unchanged, saying the company might see a “good margin leverage” coming out of the macro downturn. “However, with the timing of demand recovery still uncertain, we believe share price lacks support at current valuation," he added.

J.P. Morgan had already shown their concern over 2009 estimates. Full story is here JPMorgan predicts that Alibaba operating profit margin to fall to 31% in 2009

2009 will be Year of Investment - David Wei

David Wei, CEO of Alibaba.com, cautioned investors as he said, "The risk of a further contraction in Chinese exports and a sustained period of lackluster growth still exists. However, we continue to be confident in China's economy, in e-commerce, in our products and in our people. In fact, we see the current global economic crisis as a great opportunity to help our SME customers move online, expand our market leadership and invest for growth so we emerge even stronger in the future. 2009 will be a year of investment and expansion for Alibaba.com as we stay focused on our customers and our goal of building the world's largest online community of buyers and suppliers."

Tradekey Review - All about Tradekey.com - A B2B Directory

2009-03-20T23:13:00.005+08:00

TradeKey.com with an initial investment of US$100 million started in June 2005 by a Saudi Arabian IT Company named SISCOM. In just 4 years, Tradekey.com is considered as one of the world’s leading business-to-business directories. The main purpose of this online trading b2b directory is to match the requirements of international importers and exporters to advance their businesses.

With over 25 Million page views and 6 Million visitors per month, Tradekey.com has been successful in wining the trust of so many international traders. According to the current members counter on Tradekey.com, 2.6 million importers & exporters have registered so far.

Unlike other b2b websites, Tradekey.com is the only b2b directory with ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certifications to ensure that its users experience the same quality every time they use their services and data security for risk free business. Tradekey.com is the only b2b website after Alibaba.com with Google PageRank 7.

According to Alexa statistics, Tradekey.com falls in the range of b2b websites with traffic under 7 million visitors a month which includes ECVV.com, EC21.com, ECPlaza.com and other small scale business-to-business trade directories. So far Alibaba.com, GlobalSources.com and MadeinChina.com are taking the lead with an unmatched competition.

Other than International English, Tradekey.com is available in 3 other languages which include Arabic, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish. Although these versions of Tradekey.com are machine translated but it clearly shows their long term vision to cater as much business audience as possible.

Tradekey Services

Tradekey.com offers different services to its members to not just help them promote their products and services but also helps them in creating a brand image. Like other B2B directories, Tradekey offers free as well as premium memberships for sellers and buyers.

In premium memberships they offer 2 packages, i.e. SilverKey & Goldkey. The main difference between different levels of memberships is their rankings on the listings. Goldkey results are displayed on top of Silverkey followed by free members’ products and offers.

Silverkey prices start with $369 and goes up to $2500 while Goldkey starts from $2500 and sky is the limit depending upon the nature of services required from Tradekey. Goldkey members are also offered personalized services with a dedicated sales & support team. Goldkey & Silverkey members can also place banners on homepage for certain time.

Tradekey.com also offers buyers consultancy services. They ask buyers just to enter their requirement with their contact information. Later they contact buyers with appropriate sell offers.

Tradekey.com also offers different types of partnership plans to market its services to international members. A brigade of affiliates & partners is working actively in China which has caused a big trouble to the competitors of Tradekey.com including Alibaba & GlobalSources. This review has already become long enough to bore you, please visit Tradekey affiliate plans review.

Alibaba's Jack Ma on hard times for China & 2 other video interviews by Financial Times

2009-03-19T15:57:00.003+08:00

In his recent visit to America, Jack Ma gave interview to Financial Times.

Part 1: Jack Ma on hard times for China
Jack Ma, founder and chairman of Alibaba.com, the Chinese e-commerce company, says China's small and medium-sized companies are facing difficult times. He also discusses how his e-commerce site has plans to act as a channel of loans to banks.

Part 2: Jack Ma on Alibaba.com's global ambitions
Jack Ma, founder and chairman of Alibaba.com, tells Kathrin Hille his plans to transform his e-commerce site from being an online centre for Chinese companies to export their goods into a platform for small and medium-sized enterprises across the world to exchange their goods.

Part 3: Jack Ma says crisis cannot be solved by money
Jack Ma, founder and chairman of Alibaba.com, tells Kathrin Hille that he believes the role of shareholders and the capital market is often overrated, and at his company, shareholders come after customers and employees.

Summary of Jack Ma's interview can be read at: http://media.ft.com/cms/c6aba388-74a6-11db-bc76-0000779e2340.pdf

Alibaba’s Jack Ma Speech at Stanford University

2009-03-19T11:40:00.003+08:00

Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba.com, recently visited USA in search of partners for the sake of business expansion. In his visit, he was alsinvited by Stanford University for a speech. Here are the highlights of his speech by Jefferson Chen, a 1st year Stanford GSB.

A company’s balance sheet can only be fixed when it dies (i.e. there are ongoing ups and downs in a company’s history. The same for an individual life)
Disasters always come the moment you start tsense success
Chinese should use the Chinese way – imported ideas from the west might not work as well as you think (The world is changing – reversing positioning of China and the US in the past decade)
MBA case studies never work in reality – HBS did a case study on Alibaba years agbut the company could barely recognize themselves in the case
The purpose of this trip by the entire Alibaba management team is mainly “internal team building”
Think, learn, innovate
Visit Ebay, Google, MSFT, Starbucks, Yahoetc
Looking for partners (making more sense for these big corps in the down turn – “back tbasics”)
Recruiting from Silicon Valley (looking tadd 5,000 new positions in 2009, current employee base is 12,000) – best time tcompete for the best talents
#1 priority for a company is NOT its shareholders, but its “CUSTOMERS”
#2 priority for a company is its Employees; shareholder is only #3
Most companies only focus on #s, not the vision or its customers and employees, hence they fail
He personally thinks 2008 was the worst year and best year for Alibaba
Sensed the financial crisis very early
Did a lot of internal restructuring (downsize certain functions, preserve cash, etc) tbetter position in the downturn
Hence now in a superior position vs. competitors
Think 2009 will the best year for Alibaba
Believe the darkest period has passed (Aug-Sept 2008), but the most difficult period has not (probably the next 3-5 years)
Wants twrite a book on “How NOT to be big”
Current users on Alibaba:
30 mm Chinese SMEs and 70 mm int’l SMEs
100mm+ users on taobao.com
Taobao.com
Overtakes Walmart global total volume in 10 years
DESIGN FOR CONSUMERS
Alibaba is a global company – just happen tbe started by Chinese
“Forget” about your competitors, JUST focus on your CUSTOMERS
Be yourself, be comfortable yourself
Group dnot control anything at subs
Subs fully run by their own CEOs
NKPI on subs performance
Group ONLY provides support, not overhead
Work happily, live seriously

EC21.com Launches New Market Research Service - Korea Market Research

2009-03-17T11:53:00.006+08:00

Seoul (Korea Newswire) March 3, 2009 -- EC21.com, one of the world's leading business-to-business (B2B) marketplace for global buyers and sellers, has introduced a new service, called Korea Market Research, which provides a web-based market research report for those who seek to start a new business in Korea.

The sole purpose of Korea Market Research service is to help foreign countries understand the Korean market environment, including factors influencing consumer lifestyle choices. Analyzing the market environment will be the first step and initial glimpse into the business market to determine the likelihood of success for the new business.

For those who seek to get into the market in Korea, EC21 has assembled a team of industry experts to launch the service which provides a report of market trends and must-know facts with local resource to help clients understand and develop their designated target market in Korea.

The report will give data on market size, import status of the designated market, a list of potential prospects, relevant trade fairs and exhibitions held in Korea. Information on market trends, market drivers and restraints will also be included. The readers will find a "bullet-point" conclusion delivering a snapshot of each specific market, for a quick understanding of the mechanisms, trends and issues that characterize the market.

"Our team has the unique expertise, vision and strategic perspectives to meet the needs of clients", said Tae-Sung Kim, the executive vice president of EC21. "In short, our goal is to provide key insights for our clients to get into the market successfully", he noted.

"When getting into the market, having detailed target market information can mean the difference between making informed business decisions and using basic estimation", said Tae-Sung Kim, "We hope that our new market research service will help for those who seek to export or start a new business in Korea create effective marketing strategies for reaching their potential market segment at an affordable price." he added.

How Korea Market Research works?

For More Information, Visit
http://www.ec21.com/html/services/KoreaMarketResearch/KoreaMarketResearch.html

Rumor: Alibaba is planning to launch Products Search Engine

2009-03-11T14:06:00.001+08:00

163.com quoting an unnamed source reported that Alibaba Group is developing a product search engine to integrate all its resources. No comment on the news from Alibaba Group marketing executive is received yet.

Note: Alibaba had made several changes in its sevices later last year and early this year and encouraging it's members to post unlimited products.

360buy to Open Courier Subsidiary - Pay on Delivery

2009-03-06T12:06:00.002+08:00

RMB 20 million are planned to investment by 360buy.com, an IT product business-to-consumer e-commerce site in the establishment of a Shanghai-based courier service subsidiary, reports Sina.

The business model presented so far will be like pay-on-delivery and has been planned to start its services in seven mainland cities of China including Suzhou, Hangzhou and Nanjing. The service name is not publically annouced yet but it known internally as "Shanghai Yuan Mai Express".

On March 1, Alibaba Group's consumer-focused e-commerce site Taobao.com announced plans to launch a limited-time delivery service that cancels delivery fees for deliveries made later than three days after purchase.

Alibaba's Jack MA on the way to seek Parnters in US Market

2009-03-04T12:00:00.002+08:00

Jack Ma has decided to move into the USA e-commerce market by launching an auction and online payment websites in USA. Group executives will make decision after visiting Silicon Valley and found an opportunity in meetings with prospective partners including Google, Yahoo, eBay and Microsoft.

Jack Ma discussed possibilities of partnerships with 10 senior managers of Silicon Valley in his recent two-weeks long trip to USA. The discussions include the possibility of bringing Alibaba's Alipay online payment system and Taobao auction site to the U.S., an Alibaba spokeswoman said Tuesday. Further she added that Alibaba has considered bringing its sites to the United States and Europe for two years.

Taobao to face challenge in USA

A Taobao venture in the United States would compete with eBay and face challenges the U.S. company itself succumbed to after setting up its own site in China.
By taking business steps like eliminating user fees and offering mor localized feel to its users, Taobao has already defeated eBay in China. According to iResearch analyst, Zhang Yanping, Taobao holds over 80 percent of China's consumer-to-consumer e-commerce market similar to the position eBay holds in United States.

"If Taobao wants to enter America, then it first faces a company that is similar to a monopoly," Zhang said.

"Taobao's brand and quality may be very well known in China, but if it wants to develop abroad then it would have to build these things from the beginning," she said.

Transaction volume on Taobao is almost doubled with registered users rose upto 98 million in 2008. Makeup and mobile phones were some of the most popular items that were traded on Taobao.

Payment service Alipay, launched one year after Taobao in 2004, now has 100 million users in a country where credit cards are rare and many online shoppers pay using cash-on-delivery.

Entering into American market can be a tough challenge for Alibaba as it is an old company now and almost every competitor has invested a lot of time in predicting the moves of Jack Ma. Only the time can tell how much Jack Ma has studied other markets.

Alibaba's Alipay Partnered with Tenso Logistics

2009-03-04T11:59:00.001+08:00

Alipay, an online payment tool by Alibaba Group is now partnered with Tenso, the logistics subsidiary of Japanese company Netprice, to provide international logistics to Alipay users on March 3 2009. Alipay users will have to submit a delivery address in Japanese after registering with Tenso.

Alipay signed an agreement in September 2007 to provide online payment to Chinese users of Nissen e-commerce site Jshoppers. Alipay had 130 million registered users by late 2008, said the report.

Alipay Team Up with Mangocity for Air Bookings

2009-02-28T15:22:00.002+08:00

Shanghai Morning Post: Mangocity.com (HKES 308) will now be able to use Alibaba Group's online payment tool Alipay for its air tickets bookings. Alipay and Mangocity have also shown their interest on other mutual ventures as well which might include travel and hotel bookings.

Alipay had also signed contracts with two other online travel service providers as well which includes Ctrip (Nasdaq:CTRP) and eLong (Nasdaq:LONG).

Alibaba.com Launched Winport version 2.0

2009-02-27T14:17:00.001+08:00

Chinese b2b marketplace, Alibaba.com (HKSE 1688) has launched version 2.0 of their e-commerce product “Winport 旺铺” in less a year of its release. Winport was released in April 2008.

The updated version has been launched with better photo-search user patterns and covers following aspects:

Polished storefront template

Product photo gallery display

Mouse-over and click-enlarged photo album3d Picture Wall

Photo FlipbookPassword-protected photo album and private space

Winport 旺铺 services cost RMB 2,000-3,000 ($292-$438) per year.

Alibaba has also launched demo video for it's Chinese suppliers which can be seen at video.china.alibaba.com/static/zhibowinport.html

Alibaba Plan Cultivates E-Commerce Research

2009-02-26T12:23:00.000+08:00

To support scholars under 35 years of age, Alibaba Group has launched a plan on February 25 2009 to provide capital, research opportunities and other resources. Plan is mainly to benefit those who are working in the e-commerce field, reports Center for eBusinessman Research (cebmr.org).

The program, named the "Huo Shui" or "Running Water" plan, targets professional researchers in academic institutions, government and private enterprise, said the report. Alibaba Group has invited scholars from top universities including Zhejiang University and Fudan University to be the plan's academic consultants, said the report.

Source: J.L.M. Pacific Epoch China