Baidu and Orange– Land grab

New best friends Baidu and Orange look to be going on a land grab in emerging markets starting with the Middle East and North Africa.  

• The benefits of this partnership as I see it are subscribers for Orange and internet traffic for Baidu.
• The co-operation revolves around a mobile optimised browser called El Browzer that is being made available initially in Arabic and English but with French to follow.
• El Browzer is a new version of the browser Baidu made available last year to complement its own version of Android that launched in May 2012.
• The key to this browser is the optimised experience that it offers for users of mobile devices.
• Enhanced data compression, one-click access to web-based applications and services have been implemented to enrich the user experience on low bandwidth networks as well as to minimise data use.
• This is good for Orange as it will enable it to offer data plans where users can do more for less.
• It also benefits Baidu, as all of that traffic will be optimised within its servers giving it information on what users are doing and what there are interested in.
• This is the key to selling higher value advertising and doubtless why Baidu is willing to invest in a product and then give it away.
• This is one of those few situations where I can genuinely say that the partnership is a real win-win.
• These two companies are approaching emerging markets from opposite ends of the spectrum and are genuinely helping each other to get what they need from the opportunity.
• This is also recognition that in Emerging Markets, internet traffic is going to be increasingly on mobile devices with Baidu and Orange moving to grab these users before anyone else does.
• This is initially being launched on Android devices but if these chaps are serious they will need to devise a way to take it even lower.
• This would involve making the browser available on other operating systems such as Nokia’s s40 or even some of the Linux offerings such as Sailfish OS which are also targeting emerging markets.
• There is still a long way to go but it is clear that Baidu has its eye firmly fixed on what little virgin internet territory there is left.