小米躋身世界智能手機第三巨頭

 

小米躋身世界智能手機第三巨頭

HONG KONG — In China, the smartphone battle used to be Samsung versus Apple. But not anymore.

香港——在中國，智能手機之戰(zhàn)的雙方原本是三星(Samsung)與蘋果(Apple)?，F(xiàn)在情況變了。

Over the summer, a Chinese company, Xiaomi, took the No. 1 position in China’s competitive market and became the world’s third-largest phone maker in the process.

這個夏天，中國公司小米在競爭激烈的中國市場上取得了第一名的位置，并且在這個過程中成了世界第三大手機制造商。

Founded in 2010 as a lean start-up to sell smartly designed phones at cheap prices over the Internet, Xiaomi was decidedly late to the game. Its first handset came out around the time of the iPhone 4S.

小米2010年成立之時只是一個薄弱的初創(chuàng)公司，通過互聯(lián)網(wǎng)以低廉的價格出售設計得體的手機。毫無疑問，在這場競爭中，它來得太遲。它的第一款手機是在iPhone 4S上市前后推出的。

But a clever social media strategy and a business plan that emphasized selling services that work on the phone helped Xiaomi build frenzied support from young and trendy Chinese.

但是，利用聰明的社交媒體策略和強調銷售手機服務的商業(yè)計劃，小米獲得了中國時尚年輕人的熱烈追捧。

With people in China expected to buy 500 million smartphones in 2015 — more than three times as many as will be sold in the United States, according to the research firm IDC — Xiaomi is poised to cement its place as one of the most powerful phone makers in the world’s most important market.

據(jù)預計，中國人將在2015年購買5億部智能手機——調查公司IDC表示，這將超出美國預計銷量的三倍——小米有望在世界最重要的市場上鞏固其名列最強大手機制造商的地位。

Now the company’s founders, who include the Chinese entrepreneur Li Jun and the former Google executive Lin Bin, hope that status will help them take their brand globally.

如今，包括中國企業(yè)家雷軍和前谷歌(Google)高管林斌在內的公司創(chuàng)始人都希望，這個地位能幫他們帶領他們的品牌走向世界。

Though Xiaomi already sells internationally, next year will be the true test of whether it can continue its rise beyond China. Shunning markets like the United States and Europe, Mr. Lei and Mr. Lin are looking at huge developing countries like Brazil and India. And they hope to use e-commerce networks to sell cheap, high-quality phones and recreate their Chinese success.

小米已經(jīng)開始在國際市場上銷售，但明年才是真正考驗它能否繼續(xù)在中國以外市場發(fā)展的時候。雷軍和林斌回避美國和歐洲等市場，把目光投向了巴西和印度等龐大的發(fā)展中國家。他們希望能利用電子商務網(wǎng)絡來銷售質優(yōu)價廉的手機，重現(xiàn)他們在中國取得的成功。

But there are considerable challenges. Xiaomi does not yet have much of a patent portfolio, leaving it vulnerable to lawsuits from competitors. Last week, the company was temporarily blocked from India because of a patent complaint by the Swedish telecommunications manufacturer Ericsson. And other low-cost manufacturers from China have the same idea about pushing into those emerging markets.

不過，他們仍然面臨著巨大挑戰(zhàn)。小米目前還沒有多少專利資本，從而很容易遭到競爭對手的起訴。上周，小米因為瑞典通訊制造商愛立信(Ericsson)的專利投訴，暫時被印度市場阻攔在外。來自中國的其他廉價產(chǎn)品制造商同樣也想進入新興市場。

“Selling the phone to users is a good start, but it’s really not the end of the business,” Mr. Lin said in a recent interview. “It’s actually the beginning of the business. It’s after the user buys the phone and starts using the phone that will generate extra value, to users and to us.”

“向用戶銷售手機產(chǎn)品只是一個好的開始，但它并不是我們整個商業(yè)模式的全部，”林斌在最近的一次采訪中表示。“賣手機只是起點，用戶購買了手機并開始使用它的這個過程，才是對用戶以及對小米公司不斷產(chǎn)生增值的過程。”

Striking similarities between Xiaomi’s well-attended product unveiling ceremonies and Apple’s tightly choreographed media events have meant that Xiaomi is often described as the Apple of China — largely successful because, some experts say, it produces cheap knockoffs of Apple’s and Samsung’s high-end phones.

小米的新品發(fā)布會觀眾云集，和蘋果精心編排的媒體活動存在驚人的相似性，所以小米經(jīng)常被稱作中國的蘋果——有些專家稱，它之所以非常成功是因為它生產(chǎn)的是蘋果和三星的高端手機的廉價仿制品。

Yet the company is more than a copycat. In its business model and marketing, Xiaomi has out-innovated all comers in China.

然而，小米不僅是家山寨公司。在商業(yè)模式和營銷方面，小米的創(chuàng)新比中國其他市場參與者都多。

The online-first approach has earned Xiaomi the greatest accolade a company can receive in China: Its rivals are now copying it. The well-known telecommunications equipment makers Huawei and ZTE both have lines of phones they sell primarily online. Companies like OnePlus and Smartisan also focus on well-designed products with high-end components and sell them at a relatively low price.

這種網(wǎng)絡第一的策略為小米贏得了一家公司在中國能獲得的最高榮譽：它的對手正在效仿它。知名電信設備制造商華為和中興都擁有一些主要通過網(wǎng)絡銷售的手機產(chǎn)品線。一加和錘子科技等公司也開始專注于使用高端配置、設計精良的產(chǎn)品，然后再以相對低廉的價格出售。

That imitation could prove dangerous. Analysts point out that Huawei and Lenovo can use their control of the manufacturing of parts that go into a phone to gain a cost advantage. And hipness is hard to maintain. The head of Smartisan, Luo Yonghao, for example, has made a name for his company with product announcements that resemble stand-up comedy routines. The events are so popular, the company charges admission.

事實可能會證明，這種模仿具有危險性。分析人士指出，華為和聯(lián)想可以利用它們對手機部件生產(chǎn)的控制，來獲得成本優(yōu)勢。此外，保持最新潮是很困難的。例如，錘子科技老板羅永浩就利用類似說相聲的新品發(fā)布會為公司贏得了關注。這些活動非常受歡迎，公司甚至會收取入場費。

To be sure, Xiaomi is treated with respect by its competitors. Li Nan, vice president of the rival Meizu, which began in the early 2000s by making digital music players and aims at customers slightly older and wealthier than Xiaomi’s, likens the devotion of Xiaomi supporters to a religion.

可以肯定，小米是受競爭對手尊敬的。對手之一魅族的副總裁李楠認為，小米支持者的忠誠就像對宗教信仰的虔誠一樣。在21世紀初成立之時，魅族是一家制造數(shù)碼音樂播放器的公司，其目標客戶比小米的用戶年紀稍長，也更加富裕。

“Xiaomi fans have a high level of organization,” he said. “They love Xiaomi. It’s a form of idolatry.”

“小米的粉絲已經(jīng)是高度組織化的群體，”他說。“他們愛小米。這是一種偶像崇拜。”

Han Yu, a 24-year-old studying for his master’s degree, is one of those idolaters. He, with tens of thousands of others, helps Xiaomi test its user interface by looking for bugs and offering suggestions. Mr. Han moderates several pages on the company’s online forum, which averages 200,000 posts a day and is where fans interact with the company.

24歲的在讀研究生韓宇就是一名小米的崇拜者。他和其他數(shù)以萬計的崇拜者一起幫助小米測試用戶界面，尋找漏洞，提供建議。韓宇負責管理小米網(wǎng)絡論壇上的幾個版面，該論壇平均每天有20萬個帖子，是小米粉絲與公司互動的平臺。

Much of his personal life revolves around Xiaomi, and he says he has met many friends that way. He said he was honored when his suggestion to create a private photo folder was adopted on phones by Xiaomi.

韓宇的個人生活大部分都以小米為中心，他稱自己通過這種方式認識了很多朋友。他表示，小米采用了他提出的在手機上創(chuàng)建私人照片文件夾的建議，這讓他倍感榮幸。

“I really enjoy the sense of participation,” Mr. Han said.

韓宇說，“我真的很享受這種參與的感覺。”

Though Xiaomi makes some money on phone sales, the company’s plan is to increase profitability by selling services like entertainment and apps through the phone. The company has also started to sell other devices, like a smart television, a tablet and a fitness band, that work on its finely tuned user interface, which it built atop Google’s Android operating system.

雖然小米通過賣手機掙了一些錢，但公司計劃通過手機出售娛樂內容與應用程序來增加利潤。該公司還開始出售智能電視、平板電腦、健身手環(huán)等設備，這些設備使用的用戶界面設計精良，都是以谷歌的Android操作系統(tǒng)為基礎開發(fā)的。

Xiaomi’s marketing efforts still attract plenty of attention. After an executive meeting in December, Mr. Lin proposed a “planking” competition to management.

小米的營銷舉措獲得了大量關注。今年12月，在舉行完管理會議后，林斌向管理層提議開展“平板支撐”比賽。

Holding their bodies rigid in a push-up position, the executives looked markedly different from traditional Chinese executives, who are rarely seen outside formal conferences. Mr. Lin, who had a Xiaomi tablet perched on his back, eventually collapsed in exhaustion.

保持俯臥撐姿勢的高管們看起來與傳統(tǒng)的中國高管明顯不同，傳統(tǒng)高管很少在正式會議之外的場合露面。林斌做平板支撐時在背上放了一臺小米平板電腦，他最終疲憊不堪，倒在地上。

He lost, but the contest was an advertising victory. A photo of the competition quickly went out on social media and was shared on the service Weibo more than 3,000 times in the first 24 hours.

林斌輸了，但此次比賽是一次非常好的廣告宣傳。社交媒體上迅速出現(xiàn)了比賽的圖片，相關微博在頭24小時里被轉發(fā)了逾3000次。

For all its success, Xiaomi’s biggest challenge looms outside China. In September 2013, the company hired Hugo Barra, an old friend of Mr. Lin’s from Google, to lead the company’s international expansion. Using social media to spread word of product launches and parties, Mr. Barra has opened a number of markets in Asia.

盡管取得了巨大成功，小米面臨的最大的挑戰(zhàn)是在國外。2013年9月，公司聘用了林斌在谷歌的老朋友雨果·巴拉(Hugo Barra)負責開拓國際市場。巴拉利用社交媒體公布有關產(chǎn)品發(fā)布及聚會的信息，在亞洲開拓了一些市場。

Though some aspects of Xiaomi’s business model play on the peculiarities of China, Mr. Lin said he believes it can work abroad. In particular, he said the company will target markets with large populations, a developed e-commerce infrastructure and weak telecom carriers. The last point is important because if large service providers give consumers significant handset subsidies, the edge Xiaomi gains by selling cheap phones evaporates.

雖然小米商業(yè)模式的某些方面利用了中國的特性，林斌表示，他相信這種模式也適用于國外。尤其是，他表示，該公司將瞄準人口眾多、電子商務基礎設施發(fā)達、電信運營商薄弱的市場。最后一點非常重要，因為如果大型服務供應商給予消費者大量手機補貼，小米通過出售廉價手機獲得的優(yōu)勢就會減弱。

“I would put China No. 1, India two, Indonesia three, then hopefully follow with Brazil and Russia,” he said. “The developed countries with tightly controlled carrier networks are not in the top five.”

“我會把中國市場排在第一位，其次是印度和印度尼西亞，接下來希望進入巴西和俄羅斯，”他說。“那些運營商受到嚴格控制的發(fā)達國家，不在我們圈定的海外市場前五名之列。”

The countries Mr. Lin identifies all have large populations who still have not bought their first smartphone, meaning Xiaomi has a chance. Still, analysts say the company will have to be skillful in adapting to the local demands of each market.

在林斌提到的這些國家中，有很多尚未購買智能手機的人，這對小米來說是一個機會。但分析人士表示，該公司需要巧妙地迎合當?shù)厥袌龅男枨蟆?/p>

In India, for example, Xiaomi, before the court order blocking it, had the foresight to cooperate with the local e-commerce firm Flipkart. Nonetheless, it must square off against several local Indian phone makers who are fighting to become homegrown heroes, much like Xiaomi.

例如，小米在印度法庭對其下達禁令之前，有預見性地與當?shù)仉娮由虅展綟lipkart展開合作。盡管如此，小米必須與印度當?shù)氐膸准沂謾C制造商展開競爭，這些公司正在努力成為像小米一樣的本土英雄。

For now, investors like its chances.

就目前而言，投資人喜歡這種機會。