Technical Note | HBS Case Collection | March 2015 (Revised September 2016)

Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent: The Three Kingdoms of the Chinese Internet

by Feng Zhu and Aaron Smith

Abstract

This note provides an overview of the Chinese Internet by describing its leading three companies: Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent (BAT). While BAT had previously focused their respective businesses on distinct sectors of the online economy—Baidu for search, Alibaba for e-commerce, and Tencent for games and instant messaging—the proliferation of mobile devices in China introduced new territory to be conquered. By the end of 2014, BAT had each made a series of investments and acquisitions to aggressively compete with each other and with other competitors in the emerging mobile space. This note can be used as background for any discussion related to the Chinese Internet industry.

Keywords: Competition; Internet; Information Technology Industry; China;

Language: English Format: Print 20 pages EducatorsPurchase

Citation:

Zhu, Feng, and Aaron Smith. "Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent: The Three Kingdoms of the Chinese Internet." Harvard Business School Technical Note 615-039, March 2015. (Revised September 2016.)

Related Work

  1. Technical Note | HBS Case Collection | March 2015 (Revised September 2016)

    Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent: The Three Kingdoms of the Chinese Internet

    Feng Zhu and Aaron Smith

    This note provides an overview of the Chinese Internet by describing its leading three companies: Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent (BAT). While BAT had previously focused their respective businesses on distinct sectors of the online economy—Baidu for search, Alibaba for e-commerce, and Tencent for games and instant messaging—the proliferation of mobile devices in China introduced new territory to be conquered. By the end of 2014, BAT had each made a series of investments and acquisitions to aggressively compete with each other and with other competitors in the emerging mobile space. This note can be used as background for any discussion related to the Chinese Internet industry.

    Keywords: Competition; Internet; Information Technology Industry; China;

    Citation:

    Zhu, Feng, and Aaron Smith. "Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent: The Three Kingdoms of the Chinese Internet." Harvard Business School Technical Note 615-039, March 2015. (Revised September 2016.)  View Details
    CiteView DetailsEducatorsPurchase Related

About the Author

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Feng Zhu
Piramal Associate Professor of Business Administration
Technology and Operations Management

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