All Roads Lead to China: Business News, Analysis, and Insights from China

Since the games are now over, I thought it would be interesting to debate which of the Olympic sponsors came away with gold and which pulled a hamstring. It is an important question, as Shaun Rein has pointed out on a couple of occasions, and for me it has been interesting process not only watching […]

With firms spending 80-100 M USD to be sponsors of the Olympic Games, there are going to be questions. What I have found interesting through my discussions around this topic, and through reading the perspective of others, is that it is all in the matter of context.  Whether firms were trying to use this as […]

If you were to just read the popular press, it would be easy to laugh at the term “green Olympics”.  Journalists carrying hand meters taking air measurements, cyclists wearing face masks, and even air quality widgets all provide a bit of comedy to what is the serious conditions that their hyper development has created. The […]

Looking back at Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, I think that we are seeing an excellent case study of research and analysis practices in China. During my many conversations with firms entering China, or those looking to expand, there invariably is a question of how to measure the potential market of China. […]

Following my post earlier in the week Olympic Sponsorships (Part 1). What a Waste of Money, I wanted to follow up with a post that reflected some of the benefits of sponsoring the Beijing Olympics which have less than 48 hours before getting underway. To recap, my original post was in response to – or […]

There is no hiding the fact that the Olympics has a large commercial element to it.  Media companies pay billions for exclusive broadcast rights, McDonald’s makes sure they have the only restaurants on the green, and athletes are all fully kitted up with the logo of the highest bidder. It is fair to say that […]

Just a quick update that is being provided by Shanghai Daily and FT on Beijing’s plans to clear the air. According to the article: If the air quality for the next 48 hours is still unacceptable because of “extremely unfavorable weather conditions,” cars whose number plate’s last digit matches the last number of the date […]

When the visa problems all began 6 months ago, the primary target seemed to be teachers, students, long term working tourist, tax evaders, and others who were enjoying the lax enforcement of visa policies. There were, and continue to be, a lot of legit business men and women who have also been caught up in […]