Early last year, the central government put a freeze on gaming approvals, shutting out many big titles from making money, including PUBG and Fortnite. However, in December, they reopened approvals only to find themselves with a 6-month backlog, leaving giants Tencent and Netease still unable to monetize their biggest hits.

Daniel Ahmad, analyst at Niko Partners, joins us again to talk gaming regulation in China, the role of mini games in the WeChat vs Douyin battle, and how Steam is faring in the Middle Kingdom.

Links

• Niko Partners
• China Tech Talk 18: China's gaming and e-sports industry with Daniel Ahmad

Guest

• Daniel Ahmad, @ZhuGEX

Hosts

• John Artman, @knowsnothing, TechNode
• Matthew Brennan, @MattyBGoooner, ChinaChannel

Producer

• Peter Isachenko

Podcast information

• iTunes
• RSS feed
• Music: "Theme from Penguins on Parade" by Lee Rosevere, Music for Podcasts 3