Editorial

In China, people can do even less without a smartphone than in Germany. When it comes to mobile payment or fully integrated super apps, the People’s Republic is already much further ahead. But the Internet market has always been difficult for foreign providers. Large platforms like Facebook have almost no significance in China outside the VPN bubble. Today’s feature shows how new data regulations have now made it even harder for even the last few remaining Western apps and online service providers to reach their users. New regulations on the collection and export of personal data, as well as on censorship and the content of apps, are making life difficult for western providers. Soon, western carmakers could also be affected.