Mr. Wang Yan, the president of Sina.com, met with us at Sina.com`s headquarters in Wanquanhe, Zhongguancun. His explained that the reason behind the move is that many of the company`s clients are on the eastern side of Beijing, and Sina.com wanted to be closer to them. According to sources, advertising revenue from Sina.
com makes up to 70% to 80% of Sina.com`s total revenue, and most clients are in the eastern part. Mr. Wang also revealed that the poor business environment of Zhongguancun played an important role in the decision. The street in front of the company`s offices had been changed into a one-way road, causing a great deal of inconvenience for both the company and its clients.
Sina.com retained 21st Century Fixed Assets, a world renowned fixed assets brokerage, to assist Sina.com find a more appropriate home. After months of research and evaluating such factors as location, business opportunities, facilities, real estate management, and the particular needs of Sina.com, 21st Century Fixed Assets presented Sina.com with a small number of potential real estate projects, from which they selected SOHO NewTown.
Pan Shiyi, the General Manger of Beijing Red Stone Industrie Co. Ltd., the developer of SOHO NewTown, confirmed the news of Sina.com`s move. He said that, as the developer of SOHO NewTown, he was very happy to see a leading IT company like Sina.com move into SOHO NewTown. He sees this move as a good example of the possibility for cooperation between old and new industries.
Mr. Pan Shiyi did emphasize that, to be precise, Sina.com didn`t buy the space directly from SOHO NewTown because all of the business spaces had been sold by last December. This actual purchase occurred between Sina.com and the former owner.
Some experts thought that Sina.com`s move, along with Microsoft`s move out of Zhongguancun was the start of a 'battle between Zhongguancun and CBD'. Actually it is more a case of a company picking an office location based on a good fit between the firm`s focus and a location`s strengths.
Among the largest business districts, Zhongguancun positions itself as the 'technical center', and the Financial Street position itself as the 'financial center', while the CBD has a different focus altogether. CCTV`s move into the CBD is expected to bring in large amounts of capital and many media and production related business. Experts predict that these changes will turn the CBD into a new 'media center'. This makes the CBD an ideal location for Sina, a company that considers itself the Fourth Media.
Additionally, the majority of Sina's clients are located in the CBD, which will make it easier for Sina.com to serve existing clients and develop new business. The CBD simply proved to be a better choice for Sina.com in light of the company`s needs.
Recently, Sina has undergone many changes in its global strategy, moving its four bases worldwide (North America, Hong Kong, Taiwan and China mainland) to mainland China, which generates around 80% of its revenue.
The General Manager of Sina Hong Kong was transferred to the position of General Manager of the Sina South China District, and the office that used to be responsible for Taiwan have been moved to Shanghai in order to develop the East China District. Now the Beijing headquarters have also moved east. Sina.com is gradually move on from the era when it`s business focused on its portal, and is evolving into a practical, profit-generating company.
