Chinese servers for the popular online game on Monday Fortnite are extinct for good. Earlier this fall, Microsoft shut down the Chinese version of its professional network LinkedIn. Google hasn’t been there for many moons. Why do China and its billion Internet users scare off technological multinationals?
The example of Fortnite is eloquent. On Monday, the American publisher Epic Games and its Chinese partner, Tencent Holdings, threw in the towel. Launched in beta in 2018 on the Chinese Internet, the immersive gaming platform was only waiting for the green light from the government of President Xi Jinping to start selling virtual content and goods that would have allowed it to generate substantial revenues. . The potential annual revenues in China for this kind of digital content are estimated by experts at US $ 46 billion.
Under the pretext of wanting to protect the health of Chinese children who would otherwise spend too much time in front of screens, China has not authorized any marketing of new video games on its territory since last July. To these very severe control measures could be added others which have nothing to do with the health of the youngest Internet users, but which aim to make it illegal to share information from the outside on the Chinese Web. .
The will of the central government is to eradicate the use of digital communications encryption services such as VPNs, a means of online information exchange that helps bypass what some call the digital Great Wall of China. , or permanent cybersurveillance by State agents of sites and information prohibited from access from the local Internet network.
What is currently happening in Chinese video games is nothing new. This is just the most recent manifestation of the will of the government and its chief executive, Xi Jinping, to control who has access to the huge home digital market. Not only are foreign companies being kept on the sidelines, but Beijing is also concerned that Chinese giants like Alibaba or Tencent will grow so big that they are out of its control.
This would also explain the strange disappearance for a few months of the big boss of Alibaba, Jack Ma, explains the assistant professor at the Desautels Faculty of Management of McGill University, Elena Obukhova. She spent several years in China and is now based in the United States.
“What is currently happening in the digital world has been going on for a good ten years,” she says. There is certainly a tightening of control over the Chinese economy happening. We see the will of President Xi Jinping to consolidate his personal power, and that of the Communist Party to do the same. “
The specialist in sociology and economics recalls that China has always been cautious about welcoming foreign companies into its economy.
With the emergence of technological sectors, the state seems to believe that it can promote the birth of Chinese giants by reserving them access to the domestic market, giants which will then be in a better position to expand abroad. .
“It’s the Huawei model applied to all digital sectors,” she says. The Chinese government has a very unique vision of its place in the economy, which is still poorly understood in Western countries today. The trade war of recent years with the United States bears witness to this. “
According to Mme Obukhova, the friction between the West and China is not going to go away any time soon. In fact, we could see a few sparks appear this winter, on the occasion of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, where the international media will have to deal with Internet access that is highly controlled, if not downright spied on by the government. “China does not like the portrayal of the Western media of it. It would not be surprising if Internet access was more complicated on site during the Games. “
Under the pretext of wanting to protect the health of children, China has not authorized any marketing of new video games on its territory since last July.
Digital dictatorship
Beyond the economy, freedom of expression online, in particular on what remains of social networks there, is also in the sights of the Chinese authorities, notes the professor of the School of the media of UQAM and media specialist Patrick White.
“It’s a form of digital dictatorship: we talk about the protection of privacy, but we are witnessing a takeover of digital media by the state. We even see some form of cancel culture in the Chinese way which makes the networks of influential personalities disappear. The government is imposing a heavy burden on its people, ”he said. This situation should not directly affect the Canadian or even Quebec economy, continues the expert. Canada is a net importer relative to China and electronic components are the main commodity traded. In Quebec, wind turbine manufacturers are among those who could be directly affected by Chinese protectionist measures.
The widespread shortage of electronic components these days is forcing many companies to review their supply chains to avoid the delays it causes around the world. The decision-makers here will have to make more ethical choices, and not just strictly financial ones, when choosing their suppliers, conclude the two academics.
“I wish Canadian and American companies the best of luck who want to continue doing business in China,” exclaims Elena Obukhova. “It is certain that the supply chains of several industries will emerge transformed from this situation. At some point, countries like the United States, Australia and the European Union will have to ally themselves and put their foot down against China, warns Patrick White. Canada will have no choice but to follow. “