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Samsung accused of, denies employing child labor through Chinese contractor
Despite improvements, working conditions are still a sore point in China -- and China Labor Watch wants to emphasize that no company is exempt from scrutiny. The rights advocacy group claims that, on top of pushing mandatory overtime and poor overall conditions, Samsung contractor HEG Electronics has allegedly been employing at least seven underage workers at a Huizhou plant making phones and DVD players. Not surprisingly, Samsung has been quick to defend itself, asserting that it found "no irregularities" in two separate inspections this year and that it plans a third as a response to the new accusations. Who's telling the truth is still up in the air, although China Labor Watch is taking aim only after going undercover; it's long been suspected that contractors whitewash their labor practices when they see corporate inspectors coming from a mile away. If there's any substance to the allegations, Samsung may be the next tech giant taking action to mend a bruised public image.
Chinese government forbids MMO television series
Chances are that you weren't holding out hope that BBC One was suddenly going to announce Chuck Norris: Warcraft Ranger or that Syfy was going to sign EVE Online to a three-season deal. TV shows based on MMORPGs don't happen -- at least not yet -- but if there is any place that you could imagine one being made, it would probably be in China. Unfortunately, it looks like this hypothetical daydream is off the table for the time being, as the government ruled that no TV show can be made from an MMO property. What gives, China? Why no love for the MMO? This strange restriction is one of several new guidelines announced over the weekend by the Chinese State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television. Among the guidelines is the rule that broadcast TV can't be based on online games. The only current show on Chinese TV related to MMO is Rift in the Sky (which is based on the game Sword of the Yellow Emperor). If you consider how popular MMOs are in the country, it seems odd that the government feels that they're unworthy of appearing on air.
Huawei working with British spy service to prove its 'kit' is clean
Since Huawei's president formerly served as a senior engineer in the People's Liberation Army of China, it's unsurprising that it's raised the hackles of the US and other countries. It's been blocked from a variety of prime, security-sensitive contracts on suspicion of espionage, but the Chinese company seems bent on proving its honorable intentions, and has opened a "Cyber Security Evaluation Center" in Banbury, UK to do exactly that. According to the Economist, the company will work closely with GCHQ, the British signals-intelligence agency located in nearby Cheltenham, to persuade the UK and other governments that its equipment is trustworthy. It even has security-cleared staff, including some from the British agency, to shake down the gear and ensure it can't be exploited by spooks or crooks. Huawei already has hefty backbone contracts in Canada and New Zealand and is becoming one of the world's largest suppliers of telecom infrastructure, on top of its high ranking as a handset maker. It might hope this new approach will let it break its US and UK market logjam -- but it has a lot of pent-up distrust to overcome.
IGDA executive director resigns, joins China's Tencent
Gordon Bellamy, the (now former) executive director of the International Game Developers Association, has stepped away from the post to join Tencent, the popular Chinese online social service. Bellamy will remain on the IGDA's board (where he was before he took the executive director post), but will step away from day-to-day operations. Dustin Clingman, the current board chair, will take over in the interim until a new director can be found.Tencent runs a number of popular online social and gaming services in China (including the world's largest online community, QQ), and has recently been putting together a collection of ties to major Western gaming companies. Bellamy's Twitter account now lists him as the Director of Business Development and Industry Relations at Tencent. According to his recent tweets, he's "excited for Tencent" and is "looking forward to working with the world."
HP laptop comes with webcam standard, peek at Chinese factory as bonus (video)
Most tours of Chinese factories at least give workers a heads-up that they'll be on camera. Not so the exposé that HP inadvertently gave one of its Swedish customers. Reddit user Malplace opened a new laptop to find that a 3-minute webcam video of the factory floor at HP's contractor, Quanta, was sitting in Windows' My Documents folder. If you're looking for scandal from the footage, though, you won't find it here: Chongqing Manufacturing City's staff are shown dutifully moving the assembly line along in what looks like fair conditions, if exceptionally repetitive. The instance is most likely just a rare gaffe during testing at a manufacturer that pumps out millions of HP PCs every quarter, so we'll cut Quanta some slack. It's still a rare glimpse into a side of technology that's considered off-limits for much of the buying public.
gPotato reveals Age of Wulin sects
gPotato has released some more information about its upcoming Age of Wulin fantasy martial arts sandbox. The game will feature eight different sects, which are basically an analog for factions in other massively multiplayer titles. Each of the game's sects will be either good-, evil-, or neutral-aligned, and each will feature a unique fighting style "shaped by its identity and philosophy." Good-aligned sects typically boast strong melee combat abilities. Evil groups focus on "ruthless techniques" and blade weapons, while the neutral sects offer everything from absorption and debuff skills to a "dance-like" fighting style designed to combat multiple opponents simultaneously. Good-aligned groups include the Shaolin, Wudang, Emei, and Beggars' sects. The Blissful Valley and Royal Guards sects are evil-aligned. Finally, the Tang Clan and the Scholar's Academy are Age of Wulin's neutral sects. For more on the game, check out our impressions from last month's E3. [Source: gPotato press release]
Apple launches new iPad in China on July 20th (update: here's why)
Apple is about to complete an important part of the puzzle for the new iPad's world rollout: it just confirmed that its Retina display-packing tablet will reach mainland China on July 20th. The company isn't specific about local pricing, but it's promising both WiFi and cellular versions at its own stores and through resellers. The company is keen to avoid some of the mobs and scalping it's seen in the past and will open reservations for pickup starting on July 19th -- although the company is unusually limiting the reservation window to just three hours each day, between 9AM and noon. No matter how it shakes out, the official Chinese expansion is likely to keep the number of slingshot-delivered imports to a minimum. Update: As some commenters have noted, the Chinese launch is helped mostly by the truce with Proview. The current iPad design has been certified since March; Apple isn't about to mention Proview by name in the release, but it likely wasn't keen on risking another store ban when it could just avoid the battle altogether.
100 million smartphone owners in China getting free VoIP through messaging app Weixin
If you're in China and use a free chat app called Weixin on Android or iOS, you're about to get no-charge VoIP as well thanks to an imminent update. The company is set to join the likes of Skype, Viber and Korea's Kakao Talk in providing free cellphone calls to the nation and ought to make a huge splash given the massive 100 million user install base. The Tencent-owned service is also adding Bluetooth support, a matching VoIP web service and a complete redesign of its site, according to TechNode. There's no release date yet or word on whether the English version WeChat will get it, but if so, it might make those pricey cellphone calls to friends and family overseas a lot freer.
Apple sued over Siri in China
After settling a US$60 million lawsuit with Chinese company Proview, Apple now faces yet another costly lawsuit in China. This time the complaint focuses on Siri and is initiated by Zhizhen Network Technology, a Chinese company with its own voice assistant software. According to a report in M.I.C. gadget, Zhizhen claims that "Apple's Siri infringes on one of Zhizhen's patents so-called 'ZL200410053749.9', which is a patent for 'a type of instant messaging chat bot system' called Xiaoi Bot." The lawsuit currently is in pre-trial negotiations. You can read more about Zhizhen and the Xiaoi voice assistant on M.I.C. Gadget's website.
Age of Wulin sandbox to feature accurate real-world locations
How would you like to know a bit more about the setting, landscapes, and historical background in Age of Wulin? Yeah, it sounded cool to us too, which is why we're bringing you the highlights of the latest press release from gPotato. The free-to-play firm is publishing Snail Games' upcoming martial arts MMO in Europe (it's also coming to North America as Age of Wushu), and it says that the game and its expansive world is inspired by over 2,000 years of Chinese legends. The Wuxia and kung-fu genres are major influences, of course, so AoW takes place during the early years of the Ming Dynasty, when China's martial arts culture was at its peak. If you missed our E3 preview, you should know that the game is a skill-based sandbox featuring eight distinct combat schools and plenty of novel non-combat mechanics. The game also boasts upwards of 40,000 NPCs inhabiting 27 regions that stretch across 130 square kilometers. This is a free-roaming open-world title, too, where explorers can visit real locations like Beijing or even the developers' hometown of Suzhou. Want to walk the Great Wall? You can, along with a Shaolin Monastery, the Wudang mountains, and dozens of other locations. gPotato says the devil is in the details, so the devs have "studied and analyzed old maps, plans, and blueprints in order to reconstruct real places in game with the greatest accuracy possible." If you missed the game's North American launch trailer, we've embedded it for you after the break. [Source: gPotato press release]
E3 2012: Age of Wushu dresses to impress
Sandboxers and Hollywood script writers, keep your eyes on Age of Wushu. If you've ever wanted to run up walls, align yourself with a game's boss mobs, kidnap and ransom off your fellow players, or write about it into a television script to include your gamer audience, then Snail Games has something that's sure to grab your attention. We got some hands-on time with the game at this year's E3, so follow along after the cut for our impressions.
E3 2012: Jet Li will be the face of Age of Wushu
Age of Wushu, an upcoming martial arts MMO, features wuxia-style combat with some impressive acrobatic moves, so it seems a perfect fit that Snail Games announced at this year's E3 that Jet Li will be the face of the MMO. The International action film star has signed a two-year deal to promote the game, and as spokesperson, he'll be featured in a TV commercial and make public appearances at events. Li began his training in Wushu at the age of eight and was a multiple champion in China before retiring at the age of 19 to begin his film career. His film titles include Lethal Weapon 4, Unleashed, The Forbidden Kingdom, and The Expendables. He's also wrapping up work on The Expendables II, which is due in theaters this August. Age of Wushu is an upcoming MMO by Snail Games set in the age of the Ming Dynasty in China. It features Wuxia-style combat and some interesting concepts such as no levels or classes and a boss sidekick system. Massively will be meeting the team at E3, so keep your eyes open for more news this week! [Source: Snail Games press release] Massively's on the ground in Los Angeles during the week of June 4-7, bringing you all the best news from E3 2012. We're covering everything from PlanetSide 2 and SWTOR and ArcheAge to RIFT's and LotRO's upcoming expansions, so stay tuned!
Google to flag 'censored' searches for Chinese users (video)
Google is announcing that it's going to place a flag on contentious search terms for users in mainland China. Mountain View's Alan Eustace euphemistically described how some searches break a connection to the service, leading to users being frozen out for around a minute each time. He theatrically added that the company has checked its servers several times and found no error, so whatever issue causes these outages must be external. Whenever a term is typed that is likely to cause an "outage," the error message in the picture above will appear, with a suggestion to search for something else, or use Pinyin to search for a term where contentious keywords appear inside otherwise natural searches.
China greenlights Apple's third-gen iPad for 3G use, China Unicom smiles knowingly
Apple's current iPad is already cleared for China in WiFi trim, but those of us who've wanted to roam through Kunming on care-free 3G haven't had any officially approved choices. That's ending soon, as the Chinese government just gave the cellular version (A1430) the all-clear. Like in most parts of the world, Apple's slate won't use LTE given the lack of any established network in the area; HSPA's as good as it will get. The clearance is slightly odd given that the State Administration for Industry and Commerce is leaning in Proview's direction when it comes to iPad trademark ownership. With the iPad still legally available in the country, though, it's safe to say that official 3G iPad carrier China Unicom is happy to prepare for a rush of customers who want to buy a cellular iPad without using the zipline delivery method.
Oppo's super-skinny Finder smartphone gets many more details, should reach pre-orders June 6th (video)
The last time we saw Oppo's 6.65mm-thick smartphone, it was playing hard to get: we didn't see much more than its svelte profile. Oppo is now being a little more forthcoming, both officially and otherwise. It's now teasing the device as the Finder, and some escaped details explain just how it's getting to that Ascend P1 S-busting dimension as well as where it sits in the smartphone pantheon. TGBus understands the Finder should use a familiar-sounding 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen -- much thinner than an LCD -- as well as a dual-core 1.5GHz processor of an unspecified make and the virtually pre-requisite 8-megapixel rear and 1.3-megapixel front cameras. The lot should run on a customized version of Android 4.0. If all goes to the still somewhat unofficial plan, the Finder could be ready for pre-orders on June 6th at a not-insignificant ¥3,999 ($631) off-contract. We're mostly waiting on in-store dates and the possibility of snapping one up without a long flight to China. Update: Check out Engadget Chinese's hands-on coverage at the more coverage link below.
Motorola shows three all-touch Android 4.0 phones in China, we see a possible Verizon model
It turns out that Motorola didn't want to wait until the Google deal closed -- or, for that matter, an American launch -- to undertake a significant revamp of its phone line. A quiet Chinese event last week is now known to have brought us three RAZR-derived, all-touch phones for the three carriers in the Asian country: the XT885 for China Unicom (pictured at left), XT889 for China Telecom (center) and MT887 for China Mobile (right). Other than the network types and pretty bits, you're mostly looking at the same device, where the highlight is an official dip into Android 4.0 waters that drops the physical navigation in favor of more Nexusish on-screen keys. Don't expect a revolution in performance over last fall's roster given that they still have 1.2GHz dual-core processors, eight-megapixel rear cameras and 4.3-inch, 540 x 960 displays. The trio arrives in China on June 2nd; Motorola is likely more worried about popping champagne than giving out US launch details right now, but earlier leaks give us a strong hunch that the MT887 could hit Verizon as the uncannily similar (if still very unofficial) Droid Fighter before too long.
Yahoo to sell back half of its Alibaba stake for $7.1 billion
It's been a bit of a sour year for Yahoo -- it's seen the departure of one of its founding fathers, suffered through a patent dispute with Facebook and lost its new CEO in a sea of scandalous accusations. Yikes. At least former head honcho Scott Thompson's negotiations to sell the firm's stake in Alibaba seem to be going through -- the two firms just announced plans to redistribute about half of Yahoo's 40-percent stake in said Chinese tech giant. Under the current agreement, Alibaba will purchase 20-percent of its fully diluted shares back from the Silicon Valley company, netting Yahoo $7.1 billion in compensation. Yahoo will also be permitted to sell an additional 10-percent of its stake in a future IPO, or else require Alibaba to purchase it back at the IPO price. Despite Yahoo's stake changing hands, the companies will still be working together -- Yahoo has cleared Alibaba to continue to operate Yahoo! China (which was acquired by the latter back in October 2005) under the Yahoo! brand for up to four years -- in exchange for royalty payments, of course. Finally, Alibaba will license various patents to Yahoo moving forward. What's next? Well, Alibaba CEO Jack Ma did let it slip at AsiaD that he's considered buying Yahoo as a whole, and repurchasing the firm's assets in Asia could be a step in that direction. Read on for the official press release in all its financial glory.
Microsoft exec says Windows Phone outselling iPhone in China
Going by Microsoft's Greater China COO Michel van der Bel, the launch of Windows Phone in China is off to an auspicious start -- enough to give Apple the shakes. He claims that devices like the Nokia Lumia 800c have helped Windows Phone reach seven percent of the Chinese market, or just enough to get past the six points of the iPhone. We're waiting on hard data before we take van der Bel's word: the top smartphone makers worldwide aren't depending much or at all on Windows Phone, and the iPhone has a thriving gray market in China that masks some of its real numbers. Having said this, we've seen signs of Windows Phone enjoying a bit of a surge even in an iOS- and Android-loving Europe, so we'll be watching to see if there's an uptick in the number of buyers saying ni hao to Microsoft in the near future.
BYD intros dual-mode electric Qin vehicle, Remote Driving key for outside-the-car operation
The New York Auto Show may be done and over with, but the 2012 Beijing International Auto Show is just hitting its stride. Predictably, BYD is in attendance, and it's got a couple of new gizmos out on the red carpet. For starters, there's the Qin (pronounced "Chin," not Kin), a dual-mode electric vehicle that includes seven percent better efficiency, power and energy-saving in pure EV mode compared to the first generation's F3DM system. All told, the vehicle can scoot some 31 miles on a single 10KWh charge, and in hybrid mode, it can use both its 110KW electric motor and its 1.5 Turbo engine to output some 223KW of power and 440Nm of torque. For the technophiles, the car is also equipped with an intelligent cloud system platform, which incorporates things like "telematics, cloud-computing and a full-range of services 24 hours a day (like roadside assistance, vehicle positioning, remote monitoring, music and video downloads etc.)." As if that weren't enough, the outfit's showcasing a new Remote Driving Controller for its F3 Plus, which enables owners to perform a variety of driving functions -- moving it forward / back, turning left / right and traveling at a "restricted speed" -- without having the owner inside of the vehicle. Naturally, we're anxiously awaiting a test unit of our own. Or, for a wave of lawsuits -- whichever comes first.
HTC One X gets teardown, battery unsurprisingly dominates
While some might deem the One X's combination of svelte unibody profile, quad-core power and 720p display to be downright witchcraft, we knew differently. Fortunately, there's now scientific proof to back us up, courtesy of PCOnline, which has performed a delicate autopsy on the Chinese variant of HTC's new flagship. To explore that polycarbonate shell, a narrow plastic tool to is eased in behind the screen and around the face of the device, with the majority of the phone's tightly packed innards -- including the Tegra 3 processor -- attached to the display half. Some contacts, however, were left on the inside of the unibody, including the NFC chip. Most of the quad-core thinking parts were clustered around the 8-megapixel sensor, while the battery dominated the center of HTC's big hitter. Anyone who gets their kicks from the gentle undoing of all that engineering hard work can watch it unravel in grisly detail at the source below.
