06.30.08

Introducing the HiPhone; Strategic Product Branding in the Middle Kingdom

Posted in Business 'n Economics at 5:42 pm by Benjamin Ross

China is one of the few places in the world where the iPhone is not available…technically. This of course doesn’t mean affluent people in the Middle Kingdom aren’t making use of that slick, little device which has changed the way the world thinks about mobility. They just go about it a little differently.

The new HiPhone being sampled by a shopper

It’s no secret that slews of p!rated materials are available for sale in the Middle Kingdom. During my time living in China, I managed to purchase a “Northface” fleece jacket for $25, a pair of “Adidas” basketball shoes for $12, and countless DVDs for 1 dollar a piece among many other products of questionable origin. With China’s entrance into the WTO and its emerging presence on the international trade scene, controls against p!racy have begun to clamp down. One result of this has been new brands and product lines which still piggy-back on the success of established names, but are not exact clones of the originals. This is accomplished by designing slightly modified replicas, rather than copying the original verbatim.

Consider this product—the Chinese iPhone. However, on closer inspection it is not an iPhone at all, but rather the new HiPhone. HiPhones sell at around $200 US, and contain much of the same functionality as the iPhone. The packaging and form factor are virtually identical to the iPhone. However, nowhere on the product or packaging is written any mention of “Apple” or the “iPhone” name.

Does this packaging look familiar?

Inside, the operating system of the HiPhone is quite different from that of the Apple device. Its interface is not as sleek, the graphics are poorly designed, and the touchpad does not allow the user to “stretch” the size of a webpage using two fingers, as can be done on an iPhone. However, for many Chinese users, it is not the functionality per se, but the outward appearance and form factor which are most valued in a mobile device. In this respect, the HiPhone is good enough, not to mention comparatively cheap. Accordingly, they are selling quite well in Beijing.

For a more established example of this marketing phenomenon, consider the popular Chinese athletic apparel brand Qiaodan. Qiaodan sells shoes, T-shirts, shorts, and other sports gear through official Qiaodan storefronts all across China. Unbeknownst to those who do not speak Chinese, “Qiaodan” is the Chinese name for (Michael) Jordan. Like the original Jordan insignia, the Qiaodan logo contains an image of a bald male figure, basketball in hand, jumping through the air. Except unlike the original, the man in the Qiaodan logo has his right knee bent inward instead of extending out (see image). To casual observers, the difference easily goes undetected. And for Chinese speakers, it is only natural to assume that “Qiaodan” would be the same brand as “Jordan.”

A Qiaodan outlet store in Tianjin

Products such as HiPhone and brands such as Qiaodan represent a growing trend in Chinese product lines. Rather than making exact copies, the original gear is used as a model to design a new product which is strikingly similar to the original, yet not identical. Thus the new products, although of completely different design and origin, appear to be the same as the name-brand originals. Based on my limited legal knowledge, this would seem to also alleviate the potential issues with copyrights that could potentially lead to these operations being shut down. As China’s economy continues to expand, this method of product-design is only bound to increase as China becomes an increasingly vital player on the world market.

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