App wars
Tencent takes on Apple in China
WeChat launches“mini-programmes”; Apple bans tipping
IN MOST of the world, the success of Apple’s“walled garden”ofproprietary software has two elements. First, its attractive services: users tend to be addicted to its iTunes music shop and iBooks store. Second, the complexities involved in switching from an iPhone to another device without losing music files or having to re-download apps.
proprietary英[prəˈpraɪətri] 美[prəˈpraɪəteri] adj.专有的，专利的;所有（人）的;（商品）专卖的n.所有权，所有物;所有人;专卖药品;独家制造（及销售）的产品
Neither factor works as well in China. There, many of Apple’s services have not taken off. The American giant missed the boat on music sales in the country.In addition, few would disagree that its messaging service is a flop and that Apple Pay , its mobile-payment offering, is irrelevant—its market share on the mainland is only 1%. A“genius”employee at an Apple store in Shanghai admitssheepishly that“iCloud doesn’t work very well in China.”
And switching is a doddle in China. Nearly everyone uses WeChat, an app made by Tencent, one of China’s three big internet giants, for everything from social media to payments. Through WeChat it is easy to transfer photos, messages, contacts and payments history maintained on that app from one device to another.
doddle英[ˈdɒdl] 美[ˈdɑ:dl] n.<英，非正>是件容易做的事，是件轻而易举的事;简单之极的任务（或活动）
No wonder that Apple’s retention rate among iPhone users, which tops 80% in America and Britain, is only 50% in China. That does not bode well for a key market. Apple’s revenues in greater China have nearly doubled since 2013, to $48.5bn in 2016, thanks in part to its mainland app store.
bode英[bəʊd] 美[boʊd] vt.& vi.预兆，预告
Hostilities have now broken out with Tencent. The two had co-existed happily: since richer Chinese prefer iPhones to Android phones, these devices are where WeChat made much of its money . But earlier this year, WeChat launched“mini-programmes,”a form of lightweight app that operates independently of Apple’s app store and robs it of revenues.
Apple, meanwhile, had disliked but tolerated WeChat’s practice of allowing users to reward generators of content with small tips. These bypass Apple’s own payments mechanism . On April 19th Apple obliged WeChat to shut down tipping.
Another front in the fighting is that the American firm’s mainland app store accepts Alipay , a payment service from China’s Alibaba, but not WeChat’s payment offering. Broadly , WeChat is going from being a social-media platform (akin to Facebook and WhatsApp rolled into one) to becoming a mobile-operating system , putting it on a collision course with Apple.“There is a war going on,”
Who will win such a clash of titans? Rumours are swirling among tech experts about what might happen next. Apple is trying to fortify its position. It is investing heavily in its large network of stores and research labs on the mainland; and it plans to include China in the first wave of countries in which its highly anticipated new iPhone will be launched later this year. But Apple is on the defensive, whereas Tencent is firmly on the attack.
Tencent might even launch a WeChat phone, which would make Tencent’s offering completely independent of the iPhone. Anywhere else in the world, it would be foolish to go up against the Californian giant. In China, though, the native firm may have the advantage. Loyalty is much, much stronger to WeChat than to Apple in China.
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