China’s Tencent owns 5% in Blizzard and controls HS in China.
So what happens to that part now that Microsoft buys Blizzard.
How does this work for players.
Tencent doesn’t need ownership to have control in China on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
If they don’t do as they are told they are just flat out denied access to consumers there.
Typing phrases like
Free Hong Kong
Free Tibet
Free Taiwan
Will probably flag my post for banning. Why? Because they have to appease the dictatorship of the Chinese Communist Party. All hail the masters
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You’re probably right. Hearthstone will need government approval to operate there, and Microsoft will need it just as Blizzard did.
No, Those phrases will get your account flagged for bans because THIS IS NOT the platform for you to make a political stance.
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They will have to make a choice once China gets sufficient naval power to be able to deny intervention in the Taiwan straight in 2025. Why? Because there will be war between people there and people here.
It’s like when some economics class tells you that the “ideal” model is perfect economic efficiency, so 100% of our electronic goods should be made in the south east asia area right? Until someone decides they intend to leverage their production dominance into a weapon. It’s not a coincidence that the fabrication capacity is being divided up around the world right now.
Hearthstone is a game, and Blizzard is a company, but they both rely on customers from both markets. If you think that everything can be all cozy and friendly when people from both sides may be killing family members of people on both sides in a conflict, it won’t happen.
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The only angle I can see it mattering is to players in China, if Microsoft decides it’s boycotting China and/or China decides it’s boycotting Microsoft. So the same situation we’re in, except there’s someone bigger than Activision Blizzard to be boycotting / boycotted by China.
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Nothing changes for players because I assume that if you’re posting here on the US forums you’re playing on NA and not CN where it is also likely to have no changes because Microsoft has been conducting official business in China since 1992 and where the Xbox is also sold officially.
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You mean like how the USA leverages it’s control over the global financial system? Or energy producing countries like Saudi Arabia and Russia leveraging their oil and natural gas?
Yeah, I don’t think electronic goods really compare. John and Jane not getting their iPhone, or Jimmy not getting a PS5, isn’t going to lead to economic and societal collapse.
I’m not saying you’re wrong but it’s just how the world works.
It’s not going to affect China considering how much they like bootlegging there. Worst case scenario for the Chinese players, the game turns into Fireplacerock with Chillwind Yeti renamed into Coldbreeze Abominable Snowman, etcetera.
why is this flagged?!
Then LeBron James should be banned.
All the superstars that took a stand on social injustice on the court should be banned.
But that’s not what happened.
Companies like NBA or Nike know their markets. They ban only if it’s against their money making market.
James never protests against China, he knows he will get banned there.
China pays real money for people to act as the mass of human censorship around the world. If you speak mandarin you can probably find somewhere to sign up and get paid. For chinese citizens (especially any who go abroad) it is a requirement for them.
China attempts to leverage their economic clout in exactly the same ways as the USA. It’s not just electronics and you know it.
Of course I know. I just don’t like how you’re posting like it’s somehow wrong when every power that can do it, does it. Or just more wrong when China does it?
I don’t agree with the BRI or the nine-dash line or Hong Kong. But I also don’t think it’s wrong for the country to aspire to be recognized for more than just being prostitutes and the sweatshop for the world using the same tactics that other world powers have used past and present.
Are you John Cena or Lebron James?
Not much really. It’s just a mere 5 %. It’s not like Riot Games where Tencent owns 100%. Eventually though, PRC and the West are going to decouple. So in the long term, Tencent will most likely gradually be phased out of the western game markets