Barcelona congress hotbed for Chinese technology startups

Barcelona's World Mobile Congress is becoming a hotbed for Chinese technology startups to launch their new products, as they use the four-day industry gathering as a platform to find sales and technology partners worldwide.

This trend reflects not only China's vibrant technology startup culture, but also a new attitude by many Chinese entrepreneurs who believe their first products can be simultaneously launched in multiple international markets, unlike earlier Chinese technology companies that expanded overseas only after gaining a mature presence in China.

"We want to focus on the North America and European markets as our priority when launching our products, because we recognize these markets have an abundance of consumers willing to try the newest technologies, and have the consumption power to do so," said Brian Koenigberg, senior branding director of Focalmax.

Focalmax is a technology startup founded in 2015 in Shenzhen, which has developed cutting edge optical technology to support the high quality and three dimensional images of its own branded consumer electronics products.

The Focalmax smartphone, for example, allows users to take and watch three-dimensional pictures and videos. This function is attractive to tech-savvy and adventurous customers who want to capture images with high resemblance to reality. Powered by an Android system, the phone's other functions are similar to other smartphones on the market.

The other products in Focalmax's collection include a head up display, a collection of projectors in various sizes, a pair of virtual reality glasses, and a sports camera. All these products use high quality optical technology to ensure three-dimensional display and clarity of images.

Focalmax said that its products would become available later this year, although the exact timing, sales channel and pricing strategy are still in discussion. "We want to show our products at the Mobile World Congress so that feedback from industry partners, like app developers, and technology retail outlets internationally can help us make a successful launch," said Alex Gu, key account director at Focalmax.

"Core to our business strategy is to create an open platform that enables Focalmax products to become connected with other consumer electronics devices in the industry, as well as between other each other, so that users can experience more convenience," Gu said.

Central to such connection is the Internet of Things (IoT), which is the concept of connecting physical devices with electronics, software, sensors, and networks, so they can collect and exchange data. Gu said the cutting edge technology of Focalmax's products has the strength to take the firm to the future IoT world, especially by changing the way products function.

Its projectors, for example, are connected with the its smartphones, meaning users can easily watch their phone's pictures and films through their portable projectors anywhere they are in the house, rather than needing to sit in front of the television. Its sports camera, allows live streaming of content, meaning the viewer can watch their friends do extreme sports in real time.

As connectivity is a key theme for the technology world, the global launch of products by Chinese brands makes a great deal of sense. Beijing Shu ZiJia Yuan Technology Limited, which revealed its first product, the QLOVE Phone, in Barcelona during World Mobile Congress, is another example.

The QLOVE Phone is a circular shaped wide-screen imaging device that allows family and friends to conduct video calls with each other, much like the user experience of Skype and the Facetime function on Apple's iPhones.

Different from existing video call products, the QLOVE phone has better signal connectivity, 160 degrees widecamera lens to capture more images of the user's surroundings and has clear voice recognition within five meters radius. These functions enhance the experience of the calls.

More importantly, the set up of the device is easy, and suitable for less internet-savvy users, which make up a large proportion of older generation population in China.

Instead of having to set up accounts for particular applications on a smartphone or tablet, the QLOVE phone can operate like a traditional landline, and users only need to dial the numbers of their friends and family, and be able to video call with them provided that both parties have QLOVE phones.

Like Focalmax's products, the QLOVE Phone yet to be made available to the market, but the firm took Mobile World Congress as a key opportunity to build its brand reputation internationally, especially as the product targets both consumers who live abroad and their friends and family members in China.

"We are not so concerned about selling the product immediately, as we want to take our steps slowly to first tell our brand story so that we build a reputation globally, and to coincide our product's first public appearance with the Mobile World Congress would help us achieve this," said Paul Tang, co-founder and CEO of Beijing Shu ZiJia Yuan.