Tencent’s VP of International Business talks to us about WeChat Pay, ‘PUBG’, Joox, and plans for Southeast Asia

 

Life in China without WeChat is almost unimaginable. Tencent’s mega-hit messaging and payment app is ubiquitous in the country where you can pretty much pay for anything with it.

 

A kid can buy candy by scanning a dedicated QR code. A housewife’s morning market run comprises of almost the same steps: Take, scan, and go. Easy does it.

 

The Chinese society’s reliance on the app is obvious in numbers. There were about 1 billion WeChat users in China as per last year’s data, making it the biggest social media network outside the realms of Facebook and Twitter. The amount of chatter that goes to and fro the app is also staggering; 410 million audio and video calls, and 45 billion messages on a daily basis.

 

So, WeChat is gargantuan in China, no questioning that. But what about other regions where the adoption of digital processes is booming? For one, Southeast Asia is going through a digital revolution of sorts. Countless startups are mushrooming across different sectors, digital wallets are aplenty –– the possibilities, at this point, are endless.

 

Tencent is taking notes, and it wants a slice of this delicious pie. But what does the Chinese conglomerate have up its sleeves for Southeast Asia? Is there more to Tencent than WeChat? Mashable Southeast Asia spoke to Poshu Yeung, Tencent’s VP of International Business to understand better. Poshu, who comes from an illustrious background consisting of stints in Silicon Valley, was in Kuala Lumpur for a WeChat Pay event.

 

As of 2018, Tencent had the 5th highest global brand value. What is the plan to increase its rank? And how will Southeast Asia play a part?

 

Brand building is long-term; what you see now is what we’ve started 10 years ago. So, we’ll just continue to work and invest in the wide range of products in our arsenal. There’s PUBG, WeChat –– which by itself is a strong product with high brand value. And Joox. Surprisingly, in a span of three years, the music app is now well-known.

 

These products, as a collective, will help push the Tencent brand and help us to introduce new offerings. In the coming months, we’ll be introducing Tencent Cloud to Southeast Asia.

 

You mentioned Joox, which takes on Spotify in the music streaming space. How does Joox stand out from the competition?

 

People assume Joox and Spotify have different content, but it’s actually almost the same. Localization is our priority for Joox. We have teams in Malaysia to help champion integration between Joox and other companies.

 

Take for example, with local radio and TV stations. Spotify can’t do that. The local touch is very important and that’s our focus and belief for Joox. We also invest in interesting features that not a lot of apps have, like karaoke sessions with artistes and influencers, as well as live streaming of acclaimed awards show and concerts.

 

Source: Tencent's VP of International Business talks to us about WeChat Pay, ‘PUBG’, Joox, and plans for Southeast Asia- Marshable SE Asia