Xbox becomes first console sold in China in 14 years

BEIJING — After a wait of 14 years, video game fans in China are a step closer to legally getting their hands on one of the latest consoles after pre-orders started yesterday for Microsoft’s Xbox One.

The sales process comes after last year’s decision by the Chinese government to allow console sales in the new Shanghai free-trade zone, bringing an end to a ban on the gadgets instituted in 2000 which followed official concerns about their perceived impact on children.

Chinese company Tencent Holdings teamed up with online retailer JD.com to take pre-orders for the Xbox One.

JD.com has exclusive rights until July 30 to pre-sell the locally made device, the company said in a news release. The offer, which requires a deposit of 499 yuan (S$100), will be available only to those who click through links to the online retailer from the Chinese versions of Tencent’s WeChat and QQ mobile-messaging apps. The console is slated to start shipping nationwide in September.

Mr Duncan Clark, the Beijing-based chairman of BDA China, which advises technology companies, said Tencent and JD.com are well-positioned to benefit from China’s policy shift. “For Xbox, Tencent is the most established game distributor, and, for JD, it’s logistics, shipping and quality control,” Mr Clark said. “So it makes a lot of sense.”

“Launching Xbox One sales in China through JD.com’s Weixin and Mobile QQ entry points underscores the strength of these platforms with young and sophisticated Chinese consumers,” JD.com vice-president Du Shuang said in the news release, using the Chinese name for Tencent’s WeChat.

In January, the State Council, China’s Cabinet, temporarily suspended the game console ban nationwide and announced plans to draft new rules on their sale. China’s video-game industry will generate about US$10 billion (S$12.4 billion) in sales next year, said PricewaterhouseCoopers. BLOOMBERG