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McDonald’s Celebrates 26th Birthday in China

McDonald’s celebrates its 26th birthday in China this weekend. Despite its rocky journey, the American fast food chain is still popular amongst Chinese, with many sharing fond memories of their first McDonald’s experience.

Manya Koetse

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McDonald’s celebrates its 26th birthday in China this weekend. Despite its rocky journey, the American fast food chain is still popular amongst Chinese, with many sharing fond memories of their first McDonald’s experience.

This weekend, McDonald’s (麦当劳) celebrates its 26th birthday in the People’s Republic of China. On Sina Weibo, the official McDonald’s account wrote: “Do you remember the first time you ate at McDonald’s? 26 years ago today, we opened our first restaurant in Shenzhen.”

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The McDonald’s birthday came with a smart marketing campaign. Every WeChat user sharing the post and wishing McDonald’s happy birthday would get the 5 toy figures specially designed for the McDonald’s birthday with their meal on the night of October 8 only.

7410164egw1f8kwgyekxgj20lw0ujwpzThe special building block toys made for the birthday of McDonald’s China.

Mainland China’s first McDonald’s opened up on October 8, 1990, in the city of Shenzhen.

firstmcdonaldsThe very first McDonald’s of mainland China: Shenzhen, 1990.

But the Shenzhen restaurant was not the first McDonald’s in greater China. In 1975, the first McDonald’s already opened in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay.

hkEarly Hong Kong McDonald’s menu, via hongwrong.com.

Since its first appearance in China, McDonald’s has always faced strong competition within the fast food market. In 1984, China’s first western-style fast food restaurant ‘Yili’s Fast Food Shop’ opened its doors in Beijing’s Xidan central area. Kentucky Fried Chicken arrived in 1987 and soon became very popular in China.

On Weibo, McDonald’s has over 670.000 followers, whereas its competitor Kentucky Fried Chicken has over 1.4 million fans.

McDonald’s suffered a major setback in China when in 2014 a local reporter exposed how expired meat products were used in different restaurants across the country.

But McDonald’s China sales went up again in 2015. The chain still has more room for growth in the PRC, and is looking at new ways to franchise on the mainland.

The chain is also adapting to local tastes. The Chinese menu offers products such as the chicken rice bowl, double chicken burgers, or spicy chicken fillet burgers. In Japan, McDonald’s also adapted to local preferences by introducing products such as the Teriyaki Burger, the Rice Burger and Green Tea ice-cream.

mcdonalds

On Weibo, netizens share their McDonald’s experiences: “The first time I ate at McDonald’s was in Xiamen, and it was still quite expensive at the time,” one netizen writes: “But my dad spoiled me, and I could eat there three times per month.”

Other netizens also recall the relatively high prices of McDonald’s: “We would save up to gather 50 yuan [±7.5US$] so we could go to McDonald’s; we didn’t really have any money.”

Other Weibo users shared pictures of their childhood memories at McDonald’s.

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There are also users who have taken their love for McDonald’s to the next level. This Weibo user collects Happy Meal toys, and has gathered quite the collection over the past 26 years..

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– By Manya Koetse
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©2016 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

Manya Koetse is the founder and editor-in-chief of whatsonweibo.com. She is a writer, public speaker, and researcher (Sinologist, MPhil) on social trends, digital developments, and new media in an ever-changing China, with a focus on Chinese society, pop culture, and gender issues. She shares her love for hotpot on hotpotambassador.com. Contact at manya@whatsonweibo.com, or follow on Twitter.

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China Brands, Marketing & Consumers

Tick, Tock, Time to Pay Up? Douyin Is Testing Out Paywalled Short Videos

Is content payment a new beginning for the popular short video app Douyin (China’s TikTok) or would it be the end?

Manya Koetse

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The introduction of a Douyin novel feature, that would enable content creators to impose a fee for accessing their short video content, has sparked discussions across Chinese social media. Although the feature would benefit creators, many Douyin users are skeptical.

News that Chinese social media app Douyin is rolling out a new feature which allows creators to introduce a paywall for their short video content has triggered online discussions in China this week.

The feature, which made headlines on November 16, is presently in the testing phase. A number of influential content creators are now allowed to ‘paywall’ part of their video content.

Douyin is the hugely popular app by Chinese tech giant Bytedance. TikTok is the international version of the Chinese successful short video app, and although they’re often presented as being the same product, Douyin and Tiktok are actually two separate entities.

In addition to variations in content management and general usage, Douyin differs from TikTok in terms of features. Douyin previously experimented with functionalities such as charging users for accessing mini-dramas on the platform or the ability to tip content creators.

The pay-to-view feature on Douyin would require users to pay a certain fee in Douyin coins (抖币) in order to view paywalled content. One Douyin coin is equivalent to 0.1 yuan ($0,014). The platform itself takes 30% of the income as a service charge.

According to China Securities Times or STCN (证券时报网), Douyin insiders said that any short video content meeting Douyin’s requirements could be set as “pay-per-view.”

Creators, who can set their own paywall prices, should reportedly meet three criteria to qualify for the pay-to-view feature: their account cannot have any violation records for a period of 90 days, they should have at least 100,000 followers, and they have to have completed the real-name authentication process.

On Douyin and Weibo, Chinese netizens express various views on the feature. Many people do not think it would be a good idea to charge money for short videos. One video blogger (@小片片说大片) pointed out the existing challenge of persuading netizens to pay for longer videos, let alone expecting them to pay for shorter ones.

“The moment I’d need to pay money for it, I’ll delete the app,” some commenters write.

This statement appears to capture the prevailing sentiment among most internet users regarding a subscription-based Douyin environment. According to a survey conducted by the media platform Pear Video, more than 93% of respondents expressed they would not be willing to pay for short videos.

An online poll by Pear Video showed that the majority of respondents would not be willing to pay for short videos on Douyin.

“This could be a breaking point for Douyin,” one person predicts: “Other platforms could replace it.” There are more people who think it would be the end of Douyin and that other (free) short video platforms might take its place.

Some commenters, however, had their own reasons for supporting a pay-per-view function on the platform, suggesting it would help them solve their Douyin addiction. One commenter remarked, “Fantastic, this might finally help me break free from watching short videos!” Another individual responded, “Perhaps this could serve as a remedy for my procrastination.”

As discussions about the new feature trended, Douyin’s customer service responded, stating that it would eventually be up to content creators whether or not they want to activate the paid feature for their videos, and that it would be up to users whether or not they would be interested in such content – otherwise they can just swipe away.

Another social media user wrote: “There’s only one kind of video I’m willing to pay for, and it’s not on Douyin.”

By Manya Koetse

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©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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China Brands, Marketing & Consumers

Tsingtao Brewery ‘Pee-Gate’: Factory Worker Caught Urinating in Raw Material Warehouse

The pee incident, that occurred at a subsidiary Tsingtao Beer factory, has caused concerns among consumers.

Manya Koetse

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A video that has circulated on Chinese social media since October 19 shows how an alleged worker at a Tsingtao Beer factory climbs over a wall at the raw material production site and starts to urinate.

The incident reportedly occurred at the Tsingtao Beer Factory No. 3, a subsidiary of the Tsingtao Brewing Company, located in Qingdao, Shandong.

After the video went viral, the Tsingtao Brewery Company issued a statement that they took the incident very seriously and immediately report it to the authorities, who have started an investigation into the case. Meanwhile, the specific batch in production has been halted and shut off.

The incident has caused concern among consumers, and some commenters on social media wonder if this was the first time something like this has happened. “How do we know this hasn’t happened many times before?”

Others speculate about what might have motivated the man to urinate at the production site. There are those who believe that the man is part of an undercover operation orchestrated by a rivaling company, aimed at discrediting Tsingtao. It’s even suggested that there were two ‘moles’ leaking in this incident: one doing the urinating, and the other doing the video ‘leak.’

Meanwhile, there are voices who are critical of Tsingtao, suggesting that the renowned beer brand has not effectively addressed the ‘pee gate’ scandal. It remains uncertain how this incident will impact the brand, but some netizens are already expressing reservations about ordering a Tsingtao beer as a result.

But there are also those who joke about the “pissing incident,” wondering if Tsingtao Beer might soon launch a special “urine flavored beer.”

By Manya Koetse

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Featured photo by Jay Ang (link).

Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. First-time commenters, please be patient – we will have to manually approve your comment before it appears.

©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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