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what about baidu.com?
Shares of Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba.com rose 16.35% to HK$20.85 following news that Microsoft had offered to buy Yahoo for US$44.6 billion. Yahoo has a stake in Alibaba.
Top Chinese Internet search firm Baidu.com Inc is pondering acquisitions and possibly a HK share listing to fuel an expansion into the country's consumer Internet market, taking on Alibaba.com in the world's No. 2 Web market.
CEO Robin Li said on 8/11 he would not rule out a share listing - say in HK - to help bankroll a foray into the kinds of consumer-to-consumer (C2C) services, such as online auctions, that Alibaba's "Taobao" and other sites offer.
Admitting that it would be difficult for Baidu to push through a desired home listing, because Chinese regulations all but prohibit foreign firms from selling shares domestically, Li said he nonetheless wants Chinese investors to buy into his firm.
"We would like Chinese investors to have access to a Chinese
search company," Li told reporters after speaking to HK university students on Thu.
Asked if Baidu might consider a Hong Kong listing, he said: "We will look into all kinds of opportunities." Baidu, often referred to as China's Google and which derived its name from a Song dynasty poem abut finding the right woman among a million - commands more than half of its home Web search market but Alibaba reigns supreme in online commerce.
Now, analysts believe Baidu plans to widen its net beyond
search engines and delve deeper into messaging and advertising,
encroaching on areas dominated by portals such as SINA
and Tencent.
"We see a strong demand in C2C service, and the existing players in that space aren't doing a perfect job," Li told the university students in an oblique reference to rivals such as Alibaba.
"We now have a huge user base, and it's just a question of
redirecting the traffic we have now, to build a strong C2C
platform."
But Li said on Thur he had little interest in setting up an e-mail service along the lines of Yahoo's nor would they explore an English-based search site, despite media speculation to the contrary, conceding that rivals did it better.
Li argued that Baidu's connections across China would give it
a leg up on efforts to expand beyond its traditional business.
"The set-up cost won't be huge, it's the marketing expense that could be high," Li said without giving specifics.
Baidu beat forecasts by more than doubling Q3 profit. Its shares have more than tripled so far in '07, led by by a booming Chinese economy, soaring demand for online advertising ahead of the '08 Beijing Olympics, and market share gains against foreign and domestic rivals.
Baidu has been gobbling up market share mainly from smaller rivals and Yahoo. It also overtook SINA this year as the largest Web advertising supplier in China, according to a recent report by broker research firm CLSA.
I am interested in this cw... i have a view that this stock will fly... wise or foolhardy
Any one has a view on this stock? Is it going to be the next baidu.com??