beyondbrics

Chinese PC maker Lenovo isn’t content with being one of the world’s top PC makers – challenging the likes of Dell, HP, and Toshiba. Now it wants to pick a new fight: with Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, if reports in the China Daily are correct.

Lenovo has announced plans to create a new video games console, imaginatively dubbed the ‘eBox’.

The eBox will be made by Beijing eedoo Technology – a spin-off from Lenovo, and will be ‘slightly cheaper’ than Microsoft’s Xbox. Perhaps more notable is that it will be a controller-free console – relying on cameras that track a player’s hand and body movements – similar to platforms being developed by all 3 of the major consolemakers. From the China Daily:

Beijing eedoo Technology’s target customers for the eBox are mainly occasional rather than hardcore players.

“Our product is designed for family entertainment. EBox may not have exquisite game graphics, or extensive violence, but it can inspire family members to get off the couch and get some exercise,” Luo said.

The company estimates up to 120 million urban families in China are potential buyers of the eBox.

For those who are fond of extensive violence, the PS3 and Xbox will no doubt remain the favourites (although online games via PCs in internet cafes still seem to be the top choice for Chinese gamers).

But the eBox has a big advantage over one of its (similarly named) rival – the Xbox is currently not available legally in China (although it, and pirated games, are readily available in most major cities at small local gaming stores).

Zhang Yaqin, Microsoft’s corporate vice-president who leads research work in China, said in July that Microsoft hopes to get approval from Chinese regulators to begin selling the Xbox in China.

“We hope to launch the Xbox as soon as possible, but it all depends on the government,” Zhang said at the 2010 China Digital Entertainment Expo and Conference (Chinajoy), an online gaming fair in Shanghai.

The fact that a national champion Chinese company is about to launch a rival will surely be a major blow for Microsoft. And there’s more bad news: 16 international games developers have signed up to produce games for the eBox – often the factor that makes or breaks a console’s success. Now all they have to do is come up with games that Chinese people want to play:

Ouyang Xiangyu, managing director of Legend Capital and an investor in Beijing eedoo, said market competition is good for eedoo.

“One of the biggest challenges is to develop more games with a Chinese cultural element. That would help eedoo to win customers’ hearts,” he said.

Grand Strike Auto(worker)?

Related:

Lenovo plans to sell video game consoles – FT

[Hey Bric Spender] Chinese brands step up their game – beyondbrics

China: iPad fakes foil mobile operators – beyondbrics

Lenovo: new markets don’t come cheap – beyondbrics

Lenovo moves down market to gain market – beyondbrics

Acer takes on Lenovo in Chinese market – FT