McAfee, China Unicom, Baidu Join Forces

McAfee Wednesday announced deals with several new Chinese partners and the establishment of a new R&D center, part of an effort to step up its business in the fast-growing Chinese market.

“China is a very significant market for us, and the reasons for that are kind of obvious,” said Lawrence Wee, McAfee’s president of Asia-Pacific, speaking at a press conference in Beijing. The country’s expanding Internet market and the widespread adoption of mobile devices make China an important market, he said.

To tap China’s scale and rapid growth, McAfee has teamed up with Baidu.com, China’s top search engine, and China United Telecommunications (China Unicom), the country’s second-largest mobile operator. Baidu will offer McAfee’s antivirus software through a newly established online store, while China Unicom will offer McAfee antivirus protection on a subscription basis to users of its Lucky Mailbox mobile e-mail service, McAfee said.

These relationships, and others like them, are a critical part of McAfee’s business in China, Wee said. “We will only do business in China through our partners,” he said, adding that the company would not sell to companies or consumers directly.

Looking ahead, Wee sees demand for security software growing in China. “We see increasing demand from Chinese organizations, from business organizations and the government, who want to have a more secure environment,” he said.

McAfee also announced the establishment of a new R&D center in the southern city of Shenzhen, just across the border from Hong Kong.

The new center, which will develop security products for mobile devices, currently houses a staff of 11, said George Samenuk, McAfee’s chairman and chief executive officer. The number of employees will eventually increase to 30, he said.

-Sumner Lemon, IDG News Service (Beijing Bureau)

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