Ma Huateng Talks About Entrepreneurship: This Is How The Penguin Empire Is Created.

Editor's note: a small penguin will be hung on the lower right corner of each computer. It can not be said that it is a huge Penguin empire. Who made the penguin Empire? Who is the emperor of penguin Empire?

This is known as "the father of QQ", "Penguin king" is the founder of Tencent Ma Huateng.

In just 11 years, he has pformed Tencent from a small company into the most outstanding Internet company in China.

He made QQ a household name.

Ma Huateng once said, "a movie I like very much is the emperor penguin diary. Penguins are a lovely animal. They gather the spirit of love, courage and adventure."

Yes, it was this penguin spirit that made today's Penguin empire.

initial stage

In 1984, he arrived in Shenzhen with his parents from Hainan, and graduated from computer science department of Shenzhen University in 1993.

"Since 1998, I have thought about starting an independent business, but I have never thought clearly what to do, but the idea of starting a business has not fluctuated. I know that I am fully capable of doing things that I am obsessed with.

I feel that I can find space in paging and Internet two resources. "

Subsequently, the INTERNET based Chinese ICQ service, OICQ, was developed independently.

Ma Huateng is a person who shares the spirit of sharing and freedom. He will not simply emphasize the value of "I". He knows the meaning of team.

Several founders of Tencent have worked in Shenzhen Telecom and the Internet industry for many years. They are almost the first group of Internet users in Shenzhen. This undoubtedly provides a lot of help to Tencent at the technical and operational level.

"Entrepreneurship is not a joke, nor is the Tencent a smooth sailing.

At the very beginning, our servers were nowhere to be hosted. Creating a company is much more complicated than writing software. "

Ma Huateng feels that there are still many things to remember in the early days of entrepreneurship.

Ma Huateng had long thought of how to link paging with the Internet, but there was a heated debate about the ICQ project in Tencent.

"Finally, the identity of the development direction of the network technology enables everyone to seek common ground while reserving differences, and we begin to give preference to ICQ technology."

ICQ is a INTERNET based instant messaging tool, which combines paging, chat, e-mail and file pfer functions.

When a user installs ICQ on a personal computer, it will be embedded in the Window system and become an icon on the desktop. Every time the user turns on the computer, it is a fixed device.

Internet users can see if friends are online and can communicate directly.

Three young people saw the huge demand of users for Chinese environment ICQ services. They independently developed INTERNET based Chinese ICQ services and became the largest number of Chinese ICQ service providers in the country.

"We almost sold the developed ICQ software at a price of 600 thousand yuan.

Now I'm lucky that I didn't act rashly.

If we want to dig gold on the Internet, we can not just see immediate interests.

Many talented Internet talents often fail to pay attention to this and lose their long-term opportunities.

Ma Huateng often told his colleagues this way.

Gold rush in the emerging Internet market is a tough job.

At that time, the main business of the small company of ten people was to make projects for Shenzhen Telecom, Shenzhen Unicom and some paging stations. QQ was only a by-product of the company.

The whole company often shows up for a project, and always avoids revealing it.

In order to leave a strong impression on the customers, Ma Huateng's business card never printed the word "general manager", but only the title of engineer. In Shenzhen, there were hundreds of companies such as Tencent. Ma Huateng's expectation was that the company could survive.

Difficulties and opportunities

Like other Internet Co that just started, capital and technology are the biggest problems of Tencent.

"First, lack of funds, capital has software and can not keep up."

In February 1999, Tencent developed the first "Chinese flavour" ICQ, the Tencent "QQ", which was welcomed by users. The number of registrations was crazy, and it increased to tens of thousands of people in a short time.

The number of servers will continue to expand when the number of users increases. At that time, one thousand or two thousand yuan of server hosting fees could not bear heavy burden on the company.

"We can only rub around other people's servers. At the very beginning, it's just an ordinary PC machine, put it in a computer room with broadband conditions, and then secretly put the program into other people's servers."

"Then I thought I could not afford to sell it," Ma Huateng said with great joy at the time. "But we were in trouble when we sold QQ.

I talked to many ICP (content providers) who asked for exclusive buyout.

This makes Ma Huateng, who wants to earn more money by selling more than QQ software, is very hesitant.

Most suspending is the negotiation with Shenzhen Telecom Data bureau at that time, the other side prepares 600 thousand yuan, Ma Huateng insists on selling 1 million yuan, always can not agree, has to blow it off.

The software can not be sold, but the user growth is very fast. The investment needed to operate QQ is bigger and bigger. Ma Huateng has to go around to raise money.

Looking for a bank, the bank said that it had never heard of a mortgage loan with the "number of registered users". When talking with domestic investment partners, most of them were concerned about the number of computers and other fixed assets owned by Tencent.

In the second half of 1999, from the us to China, the Internet began to "get a fever". Inspired by old overseas netizens' overseas financing, Ma Huateng took the business plan of 6 versions and more than 20 pages to start looking for foreign venture capital, and finally met IDG and PCCW.

"They gave QQ400 million dollars, which accounted for 20% of the company's shares.

QQ has not run out of money when it reaches 10 thousand users. "

With this money, the company bought 200000 trillion of the IBM servers.

"At that time on the table, don't mention how beautiful it is."

Ma Huateng recalls the situation and was too happy to help himself.

Tencent passed a very important compensation lawsuit, that is, at that time, it was called OICQ pager. In 1999-2000 years or so, OICQ robbed a lot of ICQ users, especially in mainland China, and registered at the same time.

Ma Huateng: the rise of Chinese Internet enterprises needs "innovation".

Ma Huateng said that the Internet industry is characterized by high knowledge density, high added value and high industry driving capability.

Not only that, the industry also has the characteristics of low energy consumption, low environmental pollution and "two low".

It can be said that the service industry of the Internet is not only a high-end service industry, but also an environmental protection and green service industry.

In his speech, Ma Huateng thought the Internet industry was very new, and changed very fast, and the history was very short.

Ma Huateng believes that the main reason for the rise of local enterprises in China's Internet industry is local innovation. Local companies can fully understand the characteristics and development mode of Chinese users and develop applications and services that are really suitable for Chinese Internet users. This is the most fundamental factor.

In the future, we can see that more and more high-end service industries are going to open up and enter the capital market. Then, in terms of enterprise management mechanism, including attracting and encouraging talents, if there is no reform, there is no way to compete with international, more professional service companies.

"China's Internet has not only been a follower in the global development, but has already become a leader in some aspects.

Tencent has taken the lead in making some achievements in Internet value-added.

In November 2nd, Ma Huateng, chairman of Tencent holdings and CEO, held the position of China Internet industry and Tencent Inc at the 2009 Internet Conference.

At that time, Ma Huateng's instant messaging software QQ had more than 480 million active users. It only contributed 3 billion 360 million yuan in the third quarter of 2009, exceeding the total sum of 3 NetEase, Shanda and Alibaba.

10 years ago, when developing the instant messaging software, Ma Huateng and his partners did not know how to make money on it.

Today, Ma Huateng's Tencent Inc has established one of China's three largest integrated portals, the second largest C2C website and the largest online leisure game website around QQ. It has the largest number of users and the most active Internet community in the world. Its market capitalization is second only to Google and Amazon in the world Internet industry.

"The development of Tencent brand has completed the accumulation of quantity and volume in the past ten years, and now we should start to exert influence in the aspect of influence."

Ma Huateng said that in the next ten years, balanced development will become the focus of Tencent strategy, and we need to train talents. "We do not want to put profits on the books, but rather hope to put profits into long-term development."

Sunshine makes the sun shine.

In October 2009, the "2009 Hurun IT rich list" was released in Shanghai. Ma Huateng ranked the richest man in the list of IT richest list for the first time. The fortune of the list was 23 billion 900 million yuan. Ding Lei of NetEase ranked second, and the Chen Tianqiao family of Shanda network tied third with Robin Li of Robin Li.

Ma Huateng, who has entered the ranks of China's top tycoons, said: "we are all ordinary families. There is nothing special, but at the very least it is a bigger house."

Wealth comes from entrepreneurial dreams.

In 1998, the number of Internet users in China has just crossed the one million barrier, and netizens are still worried about the slow speed and too expensive charges.

In November of the same year, Ma Huateng founded the Tencent computer system Co., Ltd. with friends. He developed a network instant messaging tool, QQ, in February of next year, which is available for free download and use on the Internet.

Although there were other instant messaging products at the time, according to Ma Huateng's idea, QQ users could send offline messages when their friends were not online, so that friends could log on to the Internet, and no matter which computer they would change to, they could easily find friends.

This change made most of the netizens surfing the Internet on the Internet at that time. QQ chatting became synonymous with Internet.

Around 2000, Internet cafes opened up like mushrooms. QQ developed 5 million users in less than a year, and grew rapidly.

By March 2002, the number of registered users of QQ has exceeded 100 million mark.

Ma Huateng was happy and worried when the registered users climbed up, because at that time, QQ was still consuming costs without any profits.

Walter, editor in chief of the times, told Amazon's boss Jeff Bezos that it could be used to prove the embarrassing dilemma of the Internet industry at that time: "he (Bezos) tried to build a company on the basis of growth rather than profits.

This may sound strange, but this idea has changed the whole economic pattern of 1999, no matter it is good or bad.

Ma Huateng suffered a lot.

They work day and night to do something that they usually don't put their eyes on at all, so that they can earn a little money to feed QQ, such as sending server hosting fees to the communications bureau.

Although Ma Huateng and venture partners are doing their best, financial pressure still makes Tencent unbearable.

Beginning in the second half of 1999, Ma Huateng took up 6 versions and more than 20 pages of business plan and began to look for foreign venture capital. Finally, he met IDG and PCCW of Hongkong, and Ma Huateng said, "they were emboldened together to give QQ220 million dollars, which accounted for 20% of the company's shares."

With this money, Tencent bought 200000 trillion of the IBM servers.

"At that time on the table, don't mention how beautiful it is."

Every time he recalled this moment, Ma Huateng could not help himself.

The good days didn't last long.

As the global Internet industry in the second half of 2000 has plunged rapidly, the attitude of VC has begun to wavering.

"IDG has been busy looking for a home for Tencent after investing."

He said, "the worst part of my business is this time. I don't like such delays."

When another group voted for the international group holding company in June 2001, Nasdaq was about to crash.

However, the Tencent finally managed to survive the hard times, and began to make money in large scale in 2003, and was listed in Hongkong in June 16, 2004.

Ma Huateng's fortune began to rise at an alarming rate.

Ma Huateng's difficult introduction of venture capital was just a microcosm of Internet companies' survival.

Gong Hong - Jia, once known as "China's best angel investor", is deeply moved by this: "over 80% of China's entrepreneurs are successful in obtaining monopoly by some resources. For a long time, entrepreneurs in China can't do without talking about them.

Because of the Internet, with Nasdaq, with overseas venture capital, ideas and values become diversified.

In Gong Hongjia's view, unlike traditional business models, Tencent use sunlight to win the wealth of the sun. "They do not rely on who to monopolize, who rely on their own innovation and courage."

Build online life

Because Tencent is in line with the western capital market, it needs to follow its rules, and this exemplary role will undoubtedly change the traditional business concept.

For example, the rules of checks and balances on the top of the company are introduced into China from the west through the Internet and affect the business sector in China. The enterprises they are nurturing are also becoming the mainstream of Chinese business.

Ma Huateng always positioned himself as a product manager.

"Every day I will experience the products and services of the company, and I also like to make mistakes in the product department. When I see the finished products, I know whether the people who write code are lazy."

Ma Huateng told China News Weekly: "the core function of any product is to help users to solve certain needs of users, such as saving time, solving problems and improving efficiency.

The product manager is the core of the core competence to achieve the ultimate goal, through technology to achieve differentiation.

He believes that the significance of software development lies in utility rather than author's self entertainment. "Many software technicians are often very confident in their intelligence, and writing software is only a way to compare each other, and I hope that what I write is applied by more people and is willing to play a small role in pushing technology into the market."

With the changing market environment, Tencent began to try to launch diversified products.

Inadvertently, Tencent completed the layout of almost all businesses in the Internet industry.

It has been 10 years since wireless value-added service has developed to Internet online life platform including games, portals, e-commerce, third party payment, search engine and many other businesses.

He has reason to be proud of that. China's Internet industry, across many lines of business is not a Tencent, but only Tencent can lead more than two lines of business at the same time, almost all businesses are making money.

Ma Huateng's ambition is to move all the traditional life of a generation to the Internet and create a generation of online lifestyle to meet the needs of people in four aspects of information acquisition, information communication, entertainment and trading, so that network products and services can permeate into the lives of ordinary people just like sunlight and air.

"Tencent has always regarded innovation capability as the core element of a company's competitiveness."

In an interview with China News Weekly, Ma Huateng said that this kind of innovation is not limited to technology, products and so on, but more importantly, it is the innovation of business mode and user experience. "Because almost all of our products are directly oriented to users, a simple innovation or improvement of employees can benefit hundreds of millions of users. This huge sense of achievement and mission is incomparable to those of other enterprises."

Ma Huateng once said: "no matter what extent the enterprise can do, we must maintain a sense of trepidation."

Nowadays, Tencent is getting bigger and bigger, and wealth is increasing. Ma Huateng feels the responsibility is increasing.

"In the past ten years, Tencent has gained and pursued a very valuable secret of sustainable development: never pursue the maximization of one-way economic benefits, but rather develop the direction of maximization of user value and social value."

He concluded that after many years of civil practice in the Chinese Internet industry, it is beginning to lead the positive social mainstream and have a wide public impact.

In 2006, the Tencent launched the first public charity foundation of the Chinese Internet, the Tencent public charity foundation.

So far, Tencent Inc and Tencent employees have donated more than 122 million yuan for public development projects, such as education development, disaster relief, poverty alleviation, and so on.

In last year's Wenchuan earthquake, Tencent used QQ as a powerful platform. After a week of earthquake, Tencent netizens donated 20 million yuan online, creating the highest donation record in the history of Internet charity.

Combined with the current popular SNS game "QQ farm", Tencent charity network has launched the "love fruit" project, becoming the first public online game product based on SNS platform in the industry.

Ma Huateng said: "wealth has never been particularly valued."