Navigating maturing markets
Alibaba, the e-commerce giant, and Tencent, the videogame behemoth, are seeking ways to extend their strong presence in markets roiled by fickle consumer expectations and under competitive pressure. Profits will suffer...
Growth
Tencent's Makeover
An improbable feat but the tight integration of its social network with mass entertainment has a reach which will keep the company in the sights of regulators and central authorities
Apple 2.0
As competition wears down uniqueness and profitability of Apple's flagship products, the company is betting its future on 'Services', a vast archipelago of digital extensions which turns out to be hard to pin down
Pressing Priorities
Smartphone sales are Apple's core business and in a maturing market, the company's potential would be irreversably wounded by share loss on its key developed markets, critically in competitive Europe
Asian Juggernauts
Strengthening their grip on the semi-conductor industry, South Korea and Taiwan are in the lead, China is catching up fast and Japan appears determined to maintain its market share.... all told the countries commit to almost 80% of global equipment capex
Unpacking foundational tech
A small number of specialized semi-conductor equipment manufacturers have a lock on all the most advanced applications in high-tech hardware. The industry is foundational in US-China trade negotiations because China tech cannot do without
Mobile games under pressure
Since July 2018, the markets have not been kind for most videogame companies. Both Chinese firms extending their sucessful business model across Asia and Western competitors have their work cut out
Streaming games
Investors' first take on the current fall-back of the major game publishers is dire : the good times are over and winter is coming, but the industry might prepare in stealth mode to adjust to technological revolutions in the offing
Battery illusions
The strategies of Western car manufacturers for electric mobility prioritize growth markets and partnerships with Asian battery providers, none of which bodes well for a balanced and mutually beneficial EU-China relationship
Shock and Awe... and Conquer ?
Asian battery providers have achieved global dominance and western car industries have little choice but to tie their technological ambitions to the master player and largest market, China - in the short and medium term
The future of energy storage
Associate Professors J. Johnson and J. DeCarolis, North Carolina State University, envision the advent of grid-scale batteries, providing the utilities with flexible energy delivery, if the price per KwH of lithium batteries continues to plummet
Improved lithium-ion battery technology
To charge the battery, the anode loads up lithium ions. Ions travel through the electrolyte to the cathode to generate power With a higher ‘upload’, replacing the graphite anode by a silicon – graphite mix anode, the battery will generate more power