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With 624 million internet and 250 million 4G users (twice the US), all eyes are on the Chinese market for its massive potential and opportunity, especially for the Augmented Reality industry. Augmented Reality, unlike Virtual Reality, integrates technology with real environment. Google Glass and GPS are among the well known AR devices that currently exist in the market. Because the Chinese mobile and internet markets, foundations for AR technology, are expanding at a remarkable rate, experts are also expecting the Chinese AR market to catch up. In fact, history has proved AR market in China to be a success with NEOBEAER, an AR card set aimed to teach English and Chinese on phone app, and Fantasy Kaka Bear, an AR dancing bear application launched by Wechat. The former sold over a million card sets and generated over 100 million RMB the first year while the latter have over two millions downloads in the span of two days. The success doesn’t stop here with the Chinese mobile AR market estimated to grow 110% for the next five years. Baidu, Renren and Tencent are expected to produce a number of AR mass-consumer apps in the next few years, which will further expand the Chinese AR market. It doesn’t seem to anyone that the AR will be going anytime soon, especially when Sonny Xin, head of China operations for AR software company Matio, thinks that AR products will be commonly used in the Chinese daily life by 2017. Governmental support, data trade, AR domestic players growth and China’s AR relationships with America only help further strengthen the bright future of AR in the Chinese economy.

“Internet Plus” and Data Exchange Further Fuel AR

Fortunately for the AR industry, not only do the Chinese consumers represent strong potential for consumption, the government’s “Internet Plus” and recent data exchange help further advance the AR industry.

The Chinese government is showing full support for technology companies who integrate connectivity into their businesses and their products/services through the “Internet Plus” action plan. It believes that by using connectivity the Chinese economy can reach unparallel growth and advancement. Furthermore, the formation of Chinese large data exchange solidifies AR potential in the Chinese economy. The first data transition was between Tencent, China’s largest Internet service site, and JD.com at 50 million RMB. It is expected that the data exchange industry will only further grow with the help of “Big Data” cleaning, management and analysis. Both the governmental support and data exchange are crucial to the formation of AR, therefore many experts think AR future in the Chinese economy is only looking brighter.

AR Hardware and Software Domestic Players Grow

China has recently seen a shift in major players for both the mobile market and the AR software market. While Apple and Samsung are the dominant players in 2014, domestic players beat them in 2015. Xiaomi, Huawei and Oppo combined has 44% mobile market share while Apple and Samsung has 22%. On the other hand, the AR software domestic players are not standing by idly either, since Sight Plus and Hisense have released SDKs as alternatives to their foreign counterparts, Metaio and Wikitude. With domestic players stepping up, it is for the first time that experts think that China will be the world leader of the industry instead of playing catching up like it previously had in other tech related industries.

Augmented Reality in China

China Forms an AR Relationships with US

In the largest AR event in Asia (AWE in Xi’An), Ori Inbar, CEO & Co-founder of AugmentedReality.org, reveals that AugmentedReality.org, the organization behind AWE, is establishing an AR community in China with the help of Augmented Reality China Alliance (ARCA). More importantly, it is establishing the first international AR incubator to connect Silicon Valley with China for easy access and flow of innovations. The ease of building companies and entering markets in both country will ensure growth and advancement of the AR industry.

Source: http://zugara.com/

Governmental support, data exchange industry, AR hardware and software domestic players’ growth and AR relationships between US and China only help strengthen the Augmented Reality industry in China. The large consumer pool only help makes the AR market in China more attractive. Many AR products and applications are in the development process and are planned to be launched in the next several years. Chinese will only see more and more AR products and applications in their daily lives. Consequently, it is expected that this might be the first time that China is leading the world in a tech related industry. However, the lack of standards and protocols in the Chinese AR industry both in terms of technology and labor could inhibit the AR industry growth. Nonetheless, with so many technological and governmental factors in favor for the AR industry, it is expected to be growing exponentially and any company who can capture that can earn massive recognition and profits.

Daxue Consulting’s Expertise

To stay ahead of the Chinese market, close the gap on several competitors and improve profitability in a long term, companies must challenge their thinking to manage uncertainty and optimize their performance in China’s market. Our teams combine the right expertise and experience to deliver a performance approach creating exceptional results and lasting impact.

See also:

• Virtual Reality in China: What’s Next ?
• Chinese consumers: A shift to domestic brands on Tech segment
• Latest Infographic on the Industry 4.0 in China:

#Industry40 and its impact on #China‘s economy. Get all the facts at https://t.co/ZvC7pea8B0 #Industrie40 #innovation pic.twitter.com/5CykmlnC0d

— Daxue Consulting (@DaxueConsulting) September 18, 2015

To know more about Augmented Reality in China, contact us at dx@daxueconsulting.com