Qualcomm expanding businesses in China on gaming, 5G

WUZHEN - The US mobile chip titan Qualcomm is increasing its presence in China, a country it considers to be an important partner in the dynamic internet sector, the company's president Derek Aberle said.

"China is a very important market for us, what you see in China is the growth of Qualcomm business, and we are taking our technologies to some of the new segments," Aberle told Xinhua in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the World Internet Conference (WIC) in East China's Zhejiang province.

Qualcomm recently announced that its subsidiary will partner with Tencent's Interactive Entertainment Group to create immersive mobile-gaming experiences.

"Qualcomm has been cooperating with partners in China for more than 20 years, and we have seen a lot of opportunities here," said Aberle, adding that as demand grows for better products, the need for Qualcomm to establish stronger relationships has become more pressing.

The partnership with Tencent, for instance, will use Qualcomm's latest wireless technology and mobile devices, based on Snapdragon, to create superior gaming products that meet the "high requirements of Chinese consumers," according to the company.

In China, Qualcomm's core business centers around chips for smart phones, tablets and mobile computing, the majority of its profits come from patent-licensing fees.

It was hit by a lengthy anti-trust probe launched by Beijing in 2014, and slapped with a fine. Despite this, the company's business in China continued to grow. It is now investing aggressively into 5G technology.

5G will enables everyday appliances to be hooked up to the internet, and can be applied across transport, health and industrial machinery. Remote health care, wireless robots and self-driving cars will also use 5G.

"5G is going to be the next chapter for us," said Aberle. "We are working closely not only with Korean and American operators, but with operators all around the world, including here in China."

Seeing the huge potential for 5G development in China, Qualcomm opened an innovation center in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone last month, which will facilitate research and development of products related to the internet of things (IoT).

Qualcomm also operates a research and development center in Shanghai and joint ventures in the southwestern Guizhou province and Chongqing municipality, which focus on advanced server chipset technology and IoT.

The company's high-profile acquisition of NXP will boost its IoT capability as well.

Aberle said Qualcomm has been developing the underling technologies to support 5G for almost a decade, particularly in China.

Qualcomm is a member of China Mobile 5G Joint Innovation Lab, which aims to support 4G-to-5G evolution.

"We have success around things like IP cameras, drones, as well as wearables. We are seeing more success in stand-alone VR headsets. So we see tremendous amount of innovation coming," Aberle said.

Innovation is the theme of this year's World Internet Conference, as the sector has been identified by the Chinese leadership to unlock the country's growth potential as its export-oriented manufacturing economic model begins to wane.

"What is gratifying to see here in China is the 13th Five-Year Plan so much focuses on internet-plus and the innovation-driven economy as ways to create enormous opportunities," said Derek. "As a company that thrives on innovation, it is encouraging to see similar philosophy taking hold here in China."

He said Qualcomm will focus on building more partners in China and the company expects "good drumbeats of success in the years to come."