National Exam Days Again

Today in China starts the day that determining many young people's life and and ends many young people's suffer. It is the first day of the national college entrance exam, and estimated hundreds millions Chinese students will take this exam on June 7th and June 8th.

The first image is the anxious waiting parents in front of the school gate in Shanghai as I can clearly remember my Mom did many many years ago.

The last two images are in a high school in Shenzhen, students throw off 150,000 piece of test papers in celebration that the exam finally comes (after whole 3 year prep). They cleaned the campus afterwards.

Good luck to all the young students.

Descanso Garden

Photos taken from the Descanso Garden, Canon A610.

The Wedding Mania

Even as a person who does not have a television, relying on 10 minutes NPR and several check of Twitter for news update, has finally realized how overwhelming this royal wedding is, in terms of it's media coverage.

The first British Royal wedding in the YouTube age, People magazine already launched a "Royal Watch" iPad app cost 7.99$. But what impressed me is how ambitious traditional media is on the coverage. The Advertising Age reports that and TLC will show 89 hours of oryal-related programming this week, CBS has sent off anchor Katie Couric for three nights live evening news (04/04, 2011). Of course, ABC, NBS, MSNBC, CNN, etc have almost the same extensive coverage.

Surprisingly, I found Chinese press is very low key about it. I cant even find a special editorial session on those portal websites. Only one Shanghai based English channel claims will live broadcast the wedding. Why THE romantic royal fairytale happy ending story was not well covered, even less coverage than a local celebrity wedding in Hainan province?

Just personal speculation: It's still a political event and the media have already received notice to be cautious on the coverage. To further explain, from the coverage of celebrity wedding, it is obvious that people like to read and comment on weddings at this Wei-Bo age. And this year, as the 100 year anniversary of Xin-Hi Revolution, which ended the feudalism and Sun Yatsen founded the historically called Republic of China. So people in Taiwan considers this is a very auspicious year and continuous coverage on the Taiwan celebrity wedding seems never ends. There's no reason the media is so unresponsive to this royal wedding other than special note.

Another thought is generally this culture is not cultivated by the royal tradition like the Europeans or the US ancestor. The event did not resonate too much to the audience since it is too far for day dream than a local celebrity. People do have the happy ending wish but rarely understand the British royal culture and it's meaning. For most people, it's just another luxury wedding and this is what I have read on the news, calculating the finance perspective rather than fantasize the wedding.

However, still, there are some people in China are extremely active on this news. I've read at least three different ceramic manufactures all claim they are chosen by the royal family to manufacture the dishes and gifts for the wedding. UK is not the only country that tries to make money out of this event. The same as Chinese, and even better, without paying anything for it.

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Will Facebook lose face in China

When the movie Social Network became Golden Globe Nominee and Oscar Nominee, Chinese fans made the following Chinese version poster "Everything happens in this movie is coincidental. All websites mentioned are made-up by the writers, please do not try to access, especially facebook.com." And of course, the movie about a website to many Chinese that never existed will not be released in China. But the website now seems to have a chance.

Last year we saw Mark Zuckerberg's China visit photo all over Chinese SNS, and his guide is Li-Yanhong, CEO of the dominant search engine Bai-Du. It stirred some speculation about the partnership. Now April 2011, rumors come again. Rumor here and there say that Facebook has made a contract with Baidu to enter China market by the end of 2011 the earliest.

How to work with the rigorous censorship, not repeating the same road of Google has been a main concern from US press. But after so many years, I totally believe BaiDu's emergency responding system to delete any sensitive posts. The partnership with Baidu will probably secure Facebook from making any politically wrong mistakes. Plus, I really don't see too many people talking about politics on social network sites as on microblog. My interest is if it can change the content of the SNS in China.

Right now, either Kaixin or RenRen, two major SNS lack original personal content. In the US Facebook is known for its user personality. But in China, most people will only forward (even not copy & past) other people's content, and even worse, most them are gossip news from TMZ kinda websites, just startling titles and sensual photos. Ren Ren might be better than Kaixin from my observation, but still reading the same posts most the time. If Facebook can fundamentally encourage people to share their own photos and thoughts that will change the current SNS quandary. There are many ways, through better mobile interface/site interface or campaign (so many "talented" Internet writers in China). Though it is indeed challenging in a country where no copyright laws (or laws in general) and people are enthusiasm about human powered search and ethic judgement ruthlessly.

Eventually, the worst thing could happen is not Facebook retreats from China mainland market but becomes a GFWed Facebook. The lethal rumor I heard is that Facebook will just make a Chinese version which is not connected to the global database. It will be so disappointing that Facebook completely surrenders to Chinese media censorship and GFW without even trying. That is totally losing face.

6 Reasons China must qualify for 2014 Brazil WorldCup

Finally get back to track, will keep update regularly, yet can't say how regular it is, targeting a weekly update. But I have the best reason that I was not updating last month, the 2010 World Cup.

It is such a big thing for Chinese, even we've only being qualified for one time in the whole World Cup history, and not because of our strength but thanks to Japan/Korea who were hosting that year, therefore we got one more quote for Asian team. I remember that year I was in high school and we stopped the class to watch the game, which China lost 0-4 to Brazil.

This year, again, China did not advance to the final 32. Seeing all these enthusiasm from fans, just really think China must bear the "if not win go to coal mining " oath to advance in the final 32 in 2014 Brazil for the following reasons:

1. Promote nationalism. Nationalism is always a core value to promote as seen in any media products controlled by central government, yet this every four year sports event is probably the best opportunity to do so. Especially when World Cup has been interpreted with political references, as a low rank team, if China can compete with traditionally strong European teams or South America teams and even win a game, it will bring the confidence that cant be achieved anywhere else.
2. Harmonious society. Another core value. During this World Cup month, Chinese media forget the flooding, the drought, the coal mine explosion, all the front pages are covered by World Cup teams, players, their girl friends and wives. So do Internet users. Forget all the social problems, all of us are totally get entertained by the game. This is just what being dreamed by the SARFT.
   
3. Economy Boost. The news says Spain's TV rating hits the highest record since the team first time advanced to the Final and won the trophy. The total audience reached about 15.6 million. China, on the other hand, totally not of our business but we contributed 52 million audiences in the month. Imagine if China ever wins the game, how many commercials broadcasters can sell and how many beer we can drink.
   
4. Chinese Brand. Even this year, we've seen Ying-Li, this Chinese energy company's ad board in every single game. Imagine if China team gets there, how many companies will be eager to sponsor the game and promote their brand.
   
5. Grassroot spirits. Since modern professional football starts from the low-income working class in England, it still shares this grassroot identity and local awareness even though some international clubs are highly commercialized. Football still brings this hard-working spirit. It can inspire some workers in southern Chinese factories, like the Faxconn, to dream something or expect something than hopelessly work the the cents.
6. Professional League. If some points above are some kinda of joking, this is crucial. Anyhow, the ultimate goal is not just the World Cup but the professional league that can nature talents, bring progress, win fans' respect and make money.
   

This is my first time watch Word Cup outside China, in a place where very few people have passion for football. It's kinda lonely but the contrast really shows the energy, the passion from Chinese audiences. Hoping China can get into the world cup final groups is kinda wishing all these can be paid back.

Brilliant Parody: The War of Internet Addiction

Last month’s Wired ran the article “The Lost Boy” by Christopher S. Stewart, about a boy who was identified as Internet addicted by his parents and sent to the recovery camp and died there after only 14 hours.

It is so terrifying that these so called therapeutic centers use electroshock along with other torture to relieve the “addiction”; yet it is indeed happening widely after those professors, doctors and government officials claim that Internet addiction is a clinical disorder threatening young people’s mental and physical health. The article listed the government’s initiatives to control the teen’s use of Internet, especially their obsession with online game World of Warcraft, and the tragic consequence.

This is totally one side of the Internet addiction opinion, and that’s why I highly recommend this fan made machinima “ War of Internet Addiction”. It is definitely a brilliant parody of this whole Internet addiction phenomenon in China and moreover, the conflict of Internet business, and of course, the restricted Internet use in China.

This machinima is based on the news that Blizzard announced changing partnership with The 9th City (previous licensed company for WOW China business) to the Netease in 2009, which brought inconvenience to game players due to their irresponsible transactions. However, after Netease gained the partnership, the GAPP (General Admission of Press and Publication) considers this game is inappropriate and requires Netease to close the server in November, 2009. Back and forth with these American, Chinese corporations, and different government divisions, every party involved in this deal contends for their best benefits and no one cares the players. This video is the outcry of those game players, and essentially the exclamation from millions of ordinary Internet users.

According to the scenario, the parody set up these involved parties with funny nicknames, these game companies, the officials, the Internet addiction therapeutic centers. The protagonist named “Kan Ni Mei” symbolizes a candid, bold game player who wants to fight against all these black forces. In his personal journey against these rulers, the movie refers to tons of sarcastic terms relating to news events in 2009. For instance, Qin Gang, spokesman of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, his famous quote regarding the information control software Green Dam Youth Escort, “do you have a child” is in the line. If you follow these news and the derivative phrases and usages, you will definitely appreciate the humor of this video; therefore, it is a little difficult for foreigners to completely enjoy the story without enough references.

The message of the video is bitter even the video is so hilarious: why Chinese game players can not enjoy the game? Parents and teachers treat WOW players as shame, and international game players contempt Chinese players as gold mine farmers.

However, the message behind the video is inspiring, young people did not keep their mouth shut under the authority. Users as individuals think independently against brain-wash information, work collectively, collaboratively to make the video, and share the thoughts via viral videos.

Finally, here is the video clip. If you can understand Chinese, please go find the original one. This is subtitled, so the resolution is a low. And this is the highlighted part toward the end:

Must Try Apps for Nokia E71X

When I got my Nokia E71x, I know it's a smart phone but I really did not pay too much attention to how smart it is. Comparing to my old prepaid phone, I am very happy with the Wireless Internet, MP3 player and camera function, despite it actually has some inconvenience accessory wise.

Yet, since Google announced its Nexus One Phone, which really raised buzz around smart phone market again. I think I need to explore my phone before it is outdated soon. It turned out that I am really outdated that I did not actually use phone appropriately in the last four months (mostly because I did not choose the unlimited data plan). Some users have recommend and shared several very help apps, and the following four apps are the most basic ones I installed.

1. Google Package: This is the one I've been using for a long time. Visit m.google.com from you cell phone , and you can download the package including map, mail, search, youtube, and Picasa. Yet, the the package does not have a E71x version gmail application, so it still takes time to check the html version.
   
2. Nokia Email : That is why I tried this email app. From the Nokia Email website, I set up my account, and received a link to download the app to my phone. It reminds me the new email even faster than Gmail in the web browser and the whole interface is really clean and easy. It also allows you to choose when to sync the account, so it will not bother you on weekends. Also, It is free during the trail (but I dont know how long the trail is and how much for the registered version).
3. Opera Mini: A well-known web browser for mobile phone, it is much faster than AT&T pre-installed browser and more friendly, though I still can not read the full page sometimes. I download it from the official website.
4. Gravity: This is a Twitter client and it is the first mobile application that I paid for. I think Twitter on mobile is just a perfect combination and this application is so smooth and clean, I like it even more than my web version. It is free for 10 day trail and 10 dollars for registration.
   

After getting these basic applications, I am getting seriously interested in my phone's capability, which inevitably leads to dealing with the DRM thing again. I don't want to unlock my phone, but I want to read my mom's message in Chinese. I tried Crystal Psiloc Chinese Character, and it really worked very well but the registration fee for $40 is too expensive.

So, that is how it works. I will try to explain how to install Chinese character but I think it will work similar way for other languages and other purposes. In general, it is how DRM is applied to cell phone and people want to get around it.

First of all, these applications need to be signed to only one phone, so I need the authority to sign the application to my phone. The first step is to generate the certificate for the phone by your phone's IMEI number (*#06#). I dont know how to do that but some websites and individuals can help you for free or for donation, searching the latest results.

After getting the certificate, I need the tool to sign all the applications. I tried this DOSPY Sign Tool, very easy. Open the exe file and then you can import the certificate and the key by right clicking. When it is imported, you can freely sign application by right click-sign (the application should be in a separate directory of the sign tool). Then, all you need is the font application and the font. I have the Font router, signed the software and download the Chinese font I like (*.ttf format). When Font Router is installed on my phone, I found a FONT folder on the E drive, just copy the font to the folder and restart the phone, ready for my mom's message.

Other singed applications I tried including MagicKey to map the key for my phone to input Chinese, and the Sensible Sudoku. My contract with AT&T still has a long way to go, so I am glad I realized how to use the phone not too late. I definitely wont say Nokia E71x (especially with the "X" factor) is a super smart phone, but it is worth the price (technically free with 2yr contract online purchase from AT&T) with these add-on applications.

Wikipedia Annual Donation Campaign

By the end of the year, Wikipedia will kick-off its fundrasing campaign though banner notice on each page to encourage users' donation (you can always choose to hide the notice) . As someone who always plans to edit more entries but fails to do so, writing a check is the best way to technically accomplish the plan (though a very small amount). Later one day, I read a tweet saying why Wikipedia does not keep advertising on each page. In that way, users can choose to view the ad or not, and Wiki dont need to do this donation campaign again and again every time.

It sounds O.K. at first glance because we've already get used to advertising-supported free content, and this turn on/off ad option keeps some voluntary meaning. However, in my mind, I just automatically rejected this idea and did not know why. This week, as I finished the book Predictable Irrational (Dan Ariely, 2008, HaperCollins), I found the answer to my spontaneous reaction.

In this enlightening book, the author conducts all kinds of focus group experiments to study behavioral economics. One chapter is about the cost of social norms and market norms. Sometimes, we put a lot efforts to do something but dont expect the cash pay back, for instance, cooking Thanks Giving dish for the family, the example in the book. This is the social norm. On the other hand, we expect that when we sit in the office for 8 hours (even just browsing Facebook page), we are adding money to our account. This is the market norm.

Researchers did an experiment in a day care center: initially, there was no fine for being late to pick up the children. The parents and the teachers understand the situation based on social norms that people do get late occasionally and they should not do that again to bother teachers. Then, the day care center imposed a fine of being late. Since a pay relationship is involved, the social encounter is being replaced by market norms that parents can choose to be late or not. And the late cases did not decrease as expected. Then, when the center dropped the fine , getting back to the social contract, parents still pick their kids late, even slightly more often. The author concludes from this experiment that social relationship will not be reestablished easily once it is trumped by the market norm.

And, this explains why Wikipedia cant not use advertising, even voluntarily, for funding. Advertising is totally a commercial concept following the market rule; let alone it will break Wikipedia’s neutral point of view, it will also ruin the collective efforts of Wikipedia as a social media foundation. Adding advertising essentially leads to market-value norms, even not for profits; once this market norm being introduced, the social norm, the volunteer spirit of Wikipeida will hardly be impaired.

As I finally figure out this puzzle, another question came to my mind. As social media becomes so overwhelming, how do we justify the “social meaning” when it is advertising supported? Is it another situation where social norms collide with market norm?

China Shuts down Major P2P Servcies

Last brilliant idea from Chinese government regarding Internet development was the Green Dam filter software, and this time is the massive shutdown of P2P services based file share websites, such as VeryCD.com and BTChina. The officials who issue the notification are the infamously well-known SARFT and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). According to them, these websites have to be shut down because they don’t own the “Information Network Broadcast Audio Visual Programming Permission Certificate".

• From the BTChina website: (BTCHINA was notified by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) that because of the absence of audio-visual broadcasting license, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of PRC is to delete our record number and shut down the site. As for my personal safety, once again to prove rumors on the internet are untrustworthy, especially the news is the most unreliable, translated by Chinahush)

Initially, I doubt that it was the pressure from copyright holders oversea so the government has to take some action and these small websites become targets due to their huge popularity like the Pirate Bay case. Yet, after reading SARFT's regulation and blogger analysis, I realize this is not simply because of copyright infringement and censorship, it is still the question about who control the Internet content in the coming years. The SARFT definitely want to demonstrate their authority by then end of another year challenged by growing Internet activists.

This decision reveals the conflict of interests between two government departments the SARFT and MIIT. The popularity of these video sharing websites in some way humiliates SARFT since most of them promote cultural products from other countries, and SARFT want to defend their territory and control these websites as they do in traditional media. Yet, because these websites are not authorized by them but by MIIT, so SARFT has to compete with the clout of MIIT . This time, it is SARFT’s regulation forces MIIT to withdraw those websites’ licenses. As some bloggers have noticed, SARFT and MITT’s conflicts can be traced back to the development of IPTV and mobile television, anything between the media content and information technology. Two departments have not decided the disciplines and those service providers will be suffered because of these changing regulations.

I think fundamentally it is SARFT’s fear of lose the grip of media control that drives this shut down. According to government website (Chinese), the website should be state owned or state funded in order to be eligible for the Internet program permission certificate. Chances are rare that those fans organized private P2P share websites could meet this qualification. Therefore, it becomes clear that SARFT still wants to control Internet content especially as they see the threat of growing video streaming and video sharing business. Essentially, the crackdown of P2P share websites is another attempt to against the decentralized Internet trend.

References:

1. China shuts down BitTorrent websites (ChinaHush)
2. VeryCD.com may be closed for not having a license (Danwei)
3. State Funded Business Advances and Private Owned Business Retreats: recent regulations of online content influences the future of video business (Chinese)

Made in China Campaign

Today, both LA Times and PR Weekly mentioned that Chinese government has hired western background media companies to burnish the image of Chinese government and Made in China products.

The government hired Hill& Knowlton as its PR firm three months ago and now announced DDB Communications ( of Omnicom Group) for its advertising agency. The tag line of the 30 sec ad, which debuted on CNN, is Made in China is Made with the World. LA Times analyzes that it is the government’s attempt to relieve the intense trade relationship between China and western countries.

I agree that the main objective is to recover from those negative images, such as poisonous toys, or contaminated milk powder scandals, in investors’ minds and invite them back to China. During this global economy recession, many outsourcing manufacture factories in China have closed because of less needs in global market. Also, the ad campaign at the holiday season, is sending the message to bring consumers’ confidence to made in China toys and clothes since some consumers will avoid (quite impossible to completely eliminate ) made in china labels.

Besides the message of the ad, I think it is interesting to see they choose CNN for the commercial debut. For a long time, Chinese government and its media have taunted CNN for fabricated news and manipulated editing, which have constantly dignify the image of Chinese government (even with a website anti-cnn.com ). However, the government now picks up CNN for publicity. It seems the officials finally realize that business relationship is better than hostility with western media. The government has expanded its media outlets, such as XinHua News Agency, CCTV, etc. to reach western audiences, which I think is really useless, just thinking the stereotype ( or the fact) of Chinese mainstream media. And this business relationship serves the purpose better since mainstream media will not say too much bad thing about their big advertisers.

The LA Times article ended with several cynical quotations, doubting the cost and result of the campaign. I just want to recognize it as a positive sign that the government realizes the urgency to address this issue and is trying new approaches. And, I wish it is also a sign that the government develops a liberal view toward western media. Finally, here's a peak of the commercial (I have not found it on YouTube).

Still BBS: China SNS Development Report 2009

iResearch along with China’s popular Bulletin Board System developer Comsenz (developer of Discusz!) together launched a report on 2009 China’s Social Networking Sites (SNS) development. After reading the summary of the report (Chinese), though I doubt the methodology, I think it reveals the very unique feature, one essential question that I’ve been wondering, why BBS still plays an irrevocable role in SNS in China.

The Methodology: The report takes both user survey and industry interview approach for data. For the user survey part, the company displays survey link on 45 targeted websites and 324 smaller size SNS sites from July to August in 2009, asking users to fill in the survey voluntarily, ended up with 7462 samples. From the summary part, it did not analyze who took the survey, which raises the question if it has fair amount of diverse samples to illustrate the real situation. Therefore, when the reports says over 13.8% of people spend over 8 hours on BBS sites and 11.2% of people reply more than 15 posts every day, I tend to think that those who answer the survey are more likely to be heavy BBS users. With these findings, this report defines SNS as a BBS centered platform (threaded discussions), with functions such as announcements, group discussion, networking and value-added services.

Figure 1.0 How often do you reply a post everyday? 11.2% say they reply 15 posts everyday and 12.8% say between 10-15.

The findings: As a commercial report, the research goes to discuss how to effectively use BBS for viral marketing, branding and e-commerce in China market, etc. Currently, however, most SNS websites admit that advertising is still the major revenue. It could be the reason that forces BBS centered SNS system to embrace other services, like games, virtual goods, micro-blog in order to get various revenue sources.

Figure 2.0 2008-2009 China SNS Revenue Sources


One major finding of the reports is that these BBS centered SNS have the tendency to be more social: 53.3％ users saying they are using other social networking functions of the BBS, 30% say not yet but would like to try and only 10% are indifferent to new functions.

Actually, I think BBS should not be categorized as SNS if SNS are used for sites like Facebook, Twitter or RenRen (Chinese version of Facebook among university students, literally mean everybody), Kaixin (Facebook among white collar, literally mean happy). It probably is the same share culture, but for some reason that I have not figured out, the sharing concept is different in BBS context than in SNS context. Popular BBS system like Tianya.cn or Maopu cant nor be SNS, so does smaller specific BBS sites; and Kaixin, RenRen still need the links from these sites for content.

Then goes back to the essential question in the beginning, why BBS culture is so dominant, not only in China. Is it a cultural thing? That people would like to join an organized community and set the ranks, gain reputations and exchange opinions anonymously. Or is it a technical thing that it is just easy to use? Or, it is a GFW thing that people have no other option so BBS is a relatively safe harbor for information exchange (still some unfortunate guys were caught by Internet police for their posts). If I had sorted this question, I would have write a paper about it. I think it will be an interesting study to recognize the indispensable role of BBS in China's Internet culture.

For the report: Chinese English (China Internet Watch Blog)

Google Music US v Google Music China

Google lunched official music search Discover Music at the end of October 2009, which claims to give more accurate search results of songs as well as providing direct streaming link from content partners, including MySpace, LaLa, Pandora, etc. The ultimate goal is inevitably to gain traffic by the search syndication and share commission fees by redirecting users to buy songs. Especially, if certain promotional content were placed in the search results as this article suggests, this service is more like a marketing tool for music labels and music websites.

Actually, it is not Google’s first step in music search; Google China has already launched Music service to China mainland users (mainland China IP only) in March 2009. As we all know, Google China has a different motto than “don’t be evil” in order to accommodate to China market, the music service is also completely different from elsewhere due to the unique Internet policy and Internet economy.

Google China Music is partnered with a start-up Internet music service company Top100-CN, whose investors includes Chinese NBA player Yao Ming, to provide free music streaming and music download. This company negotiates the copyright with major music labels, including EMI China, Sony Music, Warner Music, Rock Records and Tape, Taihe Rye Music, etc and provides streaming and download for users totally free, though with DRM protection. The business model is almost completely relying on advertising support and it will share the ad revenue with contracted labels. Sohu reports that after 7 months of launch, the company’s revenue reached approximately $3.7 million, with a 29% market share (Baidu is still the dominant player in music search/download market with a 61% share), and the company is still expecting more advertisers in the coming months. For Google, the situation might be better. At least, it increases music search traffic and sells advertising on these music pages without worrying about copyright and content source.

Though the company’s business is staggering, it seems the only way to do music business in a place where no one buys intellectual property. It is like a myth in china market: almost all global brands, especially luxury brands and urban life style brands/products see the emerging needs and markets in China, only cultural products see the market but can not penetrate it.The difference in Goolge US and China music service reveals the weakness of China Internet economy due to lacking intellectual property awareness. It once again reiterates the question where's digital economy in China (except online game).

Entries for 2009 Oscar Best Foreign Language Film (East Asia)

The Academy Award officially released the full list of 82nd Academy Award Best Foreign Language submissions this week, totally 65 entries. The nominations will be announced on February 2, 2010 and the Oscar will be held on March 7, 2010 , by ABC. The full list is here.

Luckily, in this long list of name, I found two movies I have watched this year, and of course they are East Asia films. I am interested in the entries of Taiwan, Hong Kong, S.Korea, Japan and Mainland China. Actually, every year, the press in China always put a lot attention to the Oscar entries ambitiously, though never succeeded in the past. I watched the Nobody Watch Over Me from Japan and Forever Enthralled from China, and honestly, I dont think they have too much chance.

Forever Enthralled (China, Chen-Kaige)
This is a story about the legendary Beijing Opera Artist Mei Lanfang, from his talented early years to the turbulent life during the 1930-1940s in Shanghai and Beijing, the Second-Sino Japanese War. This is not the first movie of director Chen-Kaige to depict an opera artist protagonist. In his well-known movie Farewell Concubine (1993), he successfully turned a novel about a gay opera artist's tragedy into a sensitive and touching movie, with Leslie Cheung's splendid performance. Though I know this time it is a autobiographic story, I cant help comparing two movies, and this new one is really disappointing. The story put to much emphasis on the patriotic side of the character stubbornly, which makes his life dull and rigid for a movie. Especially for audience in China, who have already read enough patriotic stories from the textbooks to newspapers to websites, why we have to pay another 5 dollars to see the similar story again? In terms of the cast, this movie invited internationally well-known actress Zhang ZiYi and also popular Beijing Born Hong Kong start Leon, but I did not see the sparks between them at all. Yet, I totally understand why China choose this one for Oscar, among limited Chinese movie last year, this one perfectly qualifies the propaganda theme.

Nobody to Watch Over Me (Japan, Ryoichi Kimizuka)
This is the first movie I've watched that boldly addresses the consequence and the moral issue of Internet users' online discussion when involving curse, condemn and privacy toward other people. This has been a common phenomenon in HongKong, China and Japan, when someone suddenly becomes the target of all the Internet users when he/she probably did something ethically wrong and the legal system has not caught him/her. In this movie, the police believed the little girl's brother is liable for murdering two kids, so the whole family was exposed to the media unexpectedly. The girl has to suffer all the resents and curses, and no one can help her. The movie won the best screenplay at the Montreal Film Festival this year. For me, the theme is definitely very important and enlightening, but the story telling was not impressive enough for a movie.



Prince of Tears (Hong Kong, YonFan)
This is a quite art-house movie, and the reviews I have read so far did not say too much good thing about it. Still, I would like to watch it since I like the director's previous movies Bishonen and Peony Pavilion. Interestingly, the director Yonfan is actually from Taiwan, and the story is about a unique situation in Taiwan; only the investors are from Hong Kong. This movie tells a love and betray story happened during the 1950s, a politically sensitive period of Taiwan, where the five people share some secrets in the past and are confronted with other secrets now. I watched the trailer on Youtube, the scenes are as beautiful as usual, but the actresses make the lines sound like reciting a childish poem.



No Puedo Vivir sin Ti (Taiwan, Leon Dai)
Though with a Spanish title, it is a very local Taiwan Movie, based on a news story. The news that a father wanted to jump off a bridge with his beloved little daughter, triggered the interests of the director. The movie uses a documentary storytelling to record the injustice, the prejudice against the vulnerable group and the apathy of the society behind the accident. In the interview I read, the director says that he is not intended to draw sympathy toward the father-daughter but to raise the general awareness and concerns toward the issue in the society.



Mother (Korea, Joon-ho Bong)
This is a very dramatic and bloody murder story like the director's previous movies Memories of Murder and The Host. It tells the estranged relationship between an over-protective mother and a mentally disabled son. I have not watched this one, and probably will not watch it according to my experience. The last Korean movie I watched is The Old Boy, for me, it is so depressing. Nevertheless, it seems some critical movie fans like the movie a lot.

Finally, hope some of these movies will find distributors in U.S.

Hulu: What's Next?

Rumors here and there indicate that Hulu will launch subscription based service soon, not RSS subscription but cable subscription model. Previous rumors said Disney will be part of the joint venture, and soon we watched Ugly Betty and Grey’s Anatomy on Hulu. Personally, I think it is quite reasonable for Hulu.com to move forward to that direction as long as it is not subscription only service.

Reason One: Competitors are working.
A few months ago, we might still think Hulu is competing with other video streaming websites, such as Joost, which now is busy with its lawsuit against former President and CEO Mike Volpi. Actually, the increasing popularity of Hulu has already threatened traditional cable providers. Starting from July, ComCast announced a trial that offers its subscribers to streaming HBO and Cinemax shows through Comcast.net and Fancast .com, an effort of ComCast and Time Warner to enter video streaming business. In U.K., Sky TV has already launched a similar service for subscribers to watch TV program on PC by downloading their software. Confronting with the initiatives from cable providers, Hulu definitely does not want to get behind those competitors, ComCast already has customers but Hulu still needs some efforts to convert and educate its users. Maybe the desktop remote is a start.

Reason Two: No Television sets in the future
From consumer behavior perspective, many years ago, Nicholas Negroponte already said that the future is not about HDTV but no TV set at all after all information is digitized (Bing Digital, 1996). The prediction has not being completely proved but it is on the way. Hulu is definitely at the right spot to welcome all the viewers who turn away from television set but still need content, and would like to pay a little for that if it is user-friendly enough. Also, according to L.A. Times, HDTV sets guzzles energy and state like California is working on the energy efficiency plan to set stand for that. So, watching television on Hulu could be greener than watching it on the HDTV sets.

Yet, I hope Hulu will not go completely subscription only, which will be too cruel to its fans who just want to watch 30 Rock weekly and really does not need that much cable program. And, I saw more big advertisers, such as VISA and Macy's, so the ad-supported model is still working for both parties.

Law of Attraction: The Secret (2006)

My landlord is a very nice old man. Seeing my struggling with job-seeking, he insists that I should watch the documentary The Secret (2006), and he is going to kick me out of the house if I don’t watch it, which he describes as a life-changing movie.

I agree with the idea behind the movie, not the implausible “law of attraction” but the habit of positive thinking. To certain extend, the movie reminds me of also the best-selling book The Alchemist, through a boy’s pursuit of personal legend, the book tells that when you really want to fulfill something, “the whole universe conspires to help you”. It sounds very much like the lines in this movie and the famous saying from Aladin: “You wish is my command”. Coincidently, in the Alchemist, the boy has two stones, Urim and Thummim, to help him overcome frustrates and feel good. In the documentary, one interviewee mentions that he puts a stone in his pocket, feeling grateful for something when he touches it. Still, I like the novel better. In the book, the boy experiences up and down, and tries every possible way to achieve the personal legend, not just imaging he found the treasure while sitting in the dessert. The movie could mislead by repeating "ask, believe and receive”. This idea contradicts to Chinese philosophy which I grow up with that no working, no fruits. Overall, the movie used a more straight-for-word and aggressive to tell positive thinking, no, to sell it.

This design of the documentary is quite business-oriented and it is indeed a marketing success. As Wikipedia noted, the major selling point of the movie is the secret of “how to enhance wealth”. Therefore, it has a great hook, a popular way of narration (citing historically famous people), and a clear message. It once again proves the power of world-of-mouth selling. In certain way, the documentary projects the ideal middle class life and indicates people can achieve it by thinking. (Is it the reason the documentary becomes so popular on those talk shows?)

For me, it is just too far to believe the “law of attraction”, especially being presented in this way. I will rather go with the simplest saying, “dream big, work hard”. BTW, I think Wikipedia really does a good job in The Secret (2006) article in English.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Secret_%282006_film%29

Visiting the JANM Museum

Last Saturday is my second weekend in Los Angeles. Honestly, I went to Little Tokyo just for grocery shopping. Even true, I was looking around because I cant find the store I used to go. Then, I saw the posters hanging in front of a museum like building: “Kokeshi: From folk art to art toy”. Well, I just could not go away when I see creative toys. (So, all the photos are from my cell phone.)

The building actually is the Japanese American National Museum, which holds two new exhibition currently, the Glories Excess by Linkin Park member Mike Shinoda and this toy exhibition. I will say both are worth visiting.

Though I listen to Linkin Park’s songs sometimes, I am not familiar with individuals of the band. So, I am surprised to see this kind of reflection on celebrity culture by a member of such a well-known band. Shinoda’s exhibition has two sections, which are Glories Excess (born) and the Glories Excess (death). The first part was held last year and this second part will be shown in the museum from August 30 to October 4. Under the death theme, he uses skeleton to symbolize the excess and illustrates its relationship with fame, money, sex and other tempting things. Comparing to his paintings, for me, the notes on the wall are more meaningful. He explained his initial interests in this project and explains his understanding on this excess. All the things we are experiencing are actually short and temporal which can not be over-used but we never pay attention to the excess until it is too late. I also like the meaning behind the exhibition, a celebrity’s awareness on the celebrity phenomenon and I think this critical expression should be appreciated.

The toy exhibition is on the second floor, no photos, sorry. Kokeshi (こけし), is a traditional Japanese doll, which usually has two parts, the head and the body. These dolls are all hand-made and painted by local artists. The evolution of the pattern and shape of the doll also convey the historical changes and the expression of the artists. The whole collection includes all sizes of Japanese traditional Kokeshi but also some creative Kokeshi by contemporary artists, a nice combination. I did not buy any Kokeshi souvenir when I visited Tokyo but I got two from the museum store this time.

For more information about the museum and the exhibition, please visit:
http://www.janm.org/exhibits/gloriousexcess/ (August 30~October 4, 2009)
http://www.janm.org/exhibits/kokeshi/ (July 11~October 4, 2009)

What if you can not find your valet program button

The remote control of my Mitsubishi Galant has been broken (cant attach to the key chain) for a while, so I have to use it carefully and elegantly by putting it in a small purse. I finally decided to buy a new one before I move to Los Angeles, where I need to use the car everyday. The remote is associated with the security system provided by Viper, so I thought I just buy exactly the same model and replace it.

It never goes that easy as I thought but also not that complicate as those professionals told me.

So, I got the new Viper remote with the manual, which says I need to re-activate the valet program button in my car and press it several times in order to set the system. So, I Googled and Googled and Googled, to see where is the valet program button of my car. Still, I cant find it according to those answers (around the dashboard area). I bought the car from someone who is now in Taiwan, so I have to figure it out by myself now. Then, I took it to Walmart auto center, people there cant help me, another local auto center, neither. Either of them can locate the cute valet program button. They suggested me to call StereOne, a dealer of Viper. The StereoOne in my town says they no longer deal with Viper but can take a look at the car, charging $65 for finding the button, totally disappointed.

Well, after this whole complain, here comes the idea. I thought, since I actually only need the shell of the remote, what if it is just a whole chip inside, I just can replace them, not touching the system. So, I opened it, yes, it is exactly a whole chip. Finally, I saved the $65 and still dont know where's the valet program of my car, but, successfully replaced the old broken remote with a new one. So, if its just something wrong with the remote, maybe opening it and replacing the chip is a lot easier than trying to find the activate button of the car.

[Movie]I've Loved You So Long

《I've loved you so long》(Il y a longtemps que je t'aime)，是法国和德国合拍片，58届柏林影展竞赛单元入围作品，中文译作《爱你长久》，女主角是《英国病人》的美丽少妇Kristin Scott Thomas。

去年看预告的时候，就对影片整个灰蓝色的基调和流畅的音乐很有印象，终于有机会看了这部片，是一个悲伤而美丽的故事。看完觉得Kate Winslet要分一半的金球奖给Kristin，因为她把女主人公的神秘、憔悴、不安、以及坚强的每一个层面都表现出来了，非常感人。预告打的是悬疑牌，一个因为谋杀而入狱15年的女人突然出现，进入妹妹一家人平静的生活，好在故事没有朝着惊悚阴暗的方向走，而是讨论一个带着异类标签的女人，如何重新融入社会以及生与死与道德的问题，是一个充满社会关怀的故事。

IMDB显示，这部片是Philippe Claudel的电影导演处女作，他之前都参与一些电视制作，一上来就能够如此细致刻画女性情感，相当了不起。这部片没有获得那年的金熊奖，但是被授予了 “Prize of the Ecumenical Jury”，这是个有点宗教色彩的奖项，有译作“天主教人道精神将”，由世界天主教传播协会赞助，主旨是鼓励那些能够带来心灵、人性、社会价值探索的影 片。
以下有微雷，不过不涉及核心秘密。

电影一开场的2分半钟，真的很适合拿来做分镜头分析，姐姐/字幕/妹妹之间的交叉镜头，马上就把两人的互动表现出来了。在机场休息室的姐姐 Juliette面容憔悴，失神地抽着烟，妹妹Lea急匆匆地从停车场一路奔来，见到了姐姐，现在远处停顿了一下，走近，两人相识尴尬地笑了笑，姐姐起 身，妹妹上前拥吻，果真是熟悉的陌生人。

相对姐姐的坎坷人生和背负的巨大的悲伤，其实我更容易站在妹妹Lea视角来看这部影片，妹妹Lea是一个文学老师，面对姐姐被称为是谋杀犯，妹妹其实也是一个受害人，在讨论陀思妥耶夫斯基作品的 课上，论及人们对于谋杀犯的看法，Lea就几乎情绪崩溃，没有经历过的人，要如何理解杀人犯/杀人犯的亲人。与父母的冷漠不同，Lea长大以后，选择了包 容，相信和支持姐姐，I've love you so long，不仅仅是女主人公Juliette的独白，也是妹妹Lea对姐姐的表白，这句话就像支持姐妹两人自我救赎的主题。

不过影片中也有让我看不太明白的地方，就是负责监察Juliette生活的那位警察的故事，就算他觉得孤单寂寞，可是他仍然有梦想，为什么就这样抛弃梦想自杀了呢?虽然有一个悲伤的影子，本片基调还是温暖的，就像灰蓝色一样，虽然不是明亮的颜色，可是让人觉得平静温和。

The Death of a Super Star in Web2.0

I talked with my elder friend about MJ's sudden death today. She described how popular he was in India at that time. For me, it seems he is not the iconic pop music star for my generation in China. Yet, I don't know who else could be the legendary supers star for my generation. When I started to know pop culture by television or Internet, he has been the"love of tabloids" rather than the "king of pop".

But, I am still completely shocked when I learned it from New York Times' News Alert. When I rushed to my Twitter page, his name has been all over the trending words. At the noon, Farah Fawcett was the headline for the news; later in the afternoon, MJ's name has occupied all the evening news. I am still more interested to see the reaction from the web.

CNN has an article, " Jackson dies, almost takes Internet with him", which describes the phenomenal outrages of several popular websites last night. The first sentence says "How many people does it take to break the Internet? On June 25, we found out it's just one -- if that one is Michael Jackson." Totally agree.

When I searched MJ on Wikipedia this morning, it says "Database Error". Maybe too many people were editing the page at the same time.

Also, I noticed Twitter's trending words disappeared last night. I am not sure if it is because system was too busy to respond. A picture by Raul Oorzco portrays what Twitter is experiencing by replacing Twitter's famous under maintenance whale by MJ.

Besides fans and Internet users' huge responses, websites also responded much quicker than televisions.

Time Warner's gossip website TMZ is reportedly the first media to release the news and has continued to offer exclusive updates. It also has experienced several outrages since last night, according to the CNN news. Meanwhile, YouTube has already highlighted MJ's channel on front page, and even Chinese video streaming website, Tudou.com, has featured MJ on the front page.

There's one backlash of Twitter, Blog and other web 2.0 applications that these platforms make it too easy to spread rumors without responsibility. Yet, this time, web 2.0 is the most convincing way to demonstrate the influence of an international legendary super star.

Michael Jackson (1958-2009) R.I.P.