Niklas Zennstrom, who co-founded Skype among other companies, and now has a venture firm called Atomico Ventures, wants to invest in Chinese startups. (TheNextWeb)
The Chinese internet of course has a lot of hype, as successful recent IPOs have demonstrated, but also many pitfalls, starting with protectionist regulations, not to mention censorship.
But here's what's interesting about Zennstrom's approach: he says China lacks originality, and he wants to help remedy that. The charge certainly rings true: most of today's big Chinese internet startups started as clones of successful startups elsewhere, although they then evolved into something fit for the local market. But this is where Zennstrom can have an advantage: the me-too charge is all too often leveled against Europe. And it's Zennstrom among others who has shown with Skype that it's actually the original startups that have the biggest returns.
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Skype Founder Wants To Invest In Chinese Startups
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