Tencent should put customers before profits

Editor’s note: WeChat, a social media operated by Tencent that has more than 1 billion users worldwide, blocks the sharing of some functions, links and apps of some other IT companies, including Baidu, the most popular search engine in the Chinese language, on its platform. Changjiang Daily comments:

Tencent’s blocking of its competitors — which is seemingly a shortcut to avoid competition and within the discretion of the company — is suspected of abusing its monopoly position.

Tencent turns a blind eye to the fact that its customers are also clients of other internet companies, including its major rivals, and its closefisted practice, which may involve only a tiny adjustment of its background program, has caused considerable inconvenience to its users, hurting its own interests and credit as well.

Tencent should not forget how it has grown from being a small startup in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, to one of the largest internet companies in the world. It is the openness, equality and transparency of the internet that have promoted the collective rise of the internet companies, including Tencent, and the information technology industry.

And it is users’ needs and competition that inspire the industry to continuously pursue innovations and improve user experience and services. If competition and network users’ needs are restrained, the whole industry will lose its most valuable sources of motivation for innovations.

Despite its success, Tencent cannot afford to turn the internet into a local area network, which will backfire for sure.

The internet is a virtual world, but that does not mean that companies do not need to abide by real-world practices and principles, which aim to ensure that public interests are not harmed by a single company’s selfishness and greed.

The bigger the company, the heavier responsibility it shoulders to the public, and the more inclusive it should be.

Before the anti-trust watchdogs bark, Tencent should put an end to its shortsighted action, and think more of the users’ needs rather than excluding its competitors.