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.