American software giant Microsoft announced on April 30, 2014 that its popular next-gen console, the Xbox One will be launched in the Chinese market later in 2014. Microsoft went on to state that the highly anticipated device will be launched in China by September 2014 and added that the Shanghai Free Trade Zone will launch the Xbox One in the country.
The market for video game consoles, as well as entertainment machines which mainly focus on video games has had a bumpy history in China. In the past, these products were heavily restricted, however, the latest regulations and trade zones are allowing consoles to enter the nation. The popular Xbox One will enter China in partnership with domestic IPTV box manufacturer BesTV. BesTV is a Shanghai-based company which is known for producing IPTV.
IPTV are boxes that connect to traditional TVs in order to receive signals online. Yusuf Mehdi, the chief marketing and strategy officer for Xbox said, “Today marks a monumental day for Xbox, as together withour partner BesTV New Media Co, we announced we will bring Xbox One to China in September of this year”. Mehdi went on to say that this is a historic moment in their partnership, as they work towards the first official Xbox launch in China.
In 2013, Microsoft started the joint venture with BesTV.
Photo Credits: China Daily
