April 09, 2007
CDC Mobile Introduces New Mobile Game in China
By Anuradha Shukla TMCnet Contributing Editor
CDC Mobile recently launched its first “free to play, pay for merchandise” mobile game, titled Mocca Beans, in China. The game presents players with different block sets, each producing endless combinations in different stages. The basic game is free; players also can purchase tools to achieve desired combinations and reach higher levels. Mocca Beans can be played on an individual level, and by a large number of concurrent users online using mobile phones. Mobile subscribers in China exceeded 467 million at the end of January, 2007, and statistics from China's Ministry of Information Industry (MII) show that the mobile penetration rate had reached 35.3 percent. This, combined with the fact that well-designed mobile games are becoming increasingly popular, is why CDC Mobile created Mocca Beans.
The company is also working on a variety of proprietary content to expand its 3G portfolio, including “The Straight Show” (a Chinese version of “The Daily Show” in the U.S.). Currently available online on China.com, the show has gained a huge following among Chinese Internet users. “Our growth strategy for MVAS (Mobile Value Added Services) is to further strengthen organic growth and to move upstream into the content provider segment of the business,” said Donglei Fang, COO of China.com, Inc, in a press release. Fang continued: “We believe the industry will continue to consolidate towards a smaller group of more stable service providers, which will ultimately provide a healthier competitive environment for our MVAS business. We are confident that CDC Mobile will gain a bigger market share as a leading SP (Service Provider) with proprietary mobile content in the long run.” Leveraging a strong cash position, CDC Mobile is also selectively acquiring synergistic and earnings-accretive companies in the industry. The company is reportedly investing up to $100 million in its 3G Content Partner Program targeting providers and aggregators in North Asia and Europe, as well as the creation of new original content for the 3G marketplace. CDC Mobile, a business unit of CDC Corporation, is focused on providing consumer-based and enterprise-based mobile applications services in China. |