Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Why is China smashing its tech industry?

noahpinion.substack.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

181–190 of 401 posts

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#181

Post by throwaway0a5e »

sydd wrote: post #170
throwaway0a5e wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>It seems harmful to let gambling be unregulated... It seems barely any better make a state revenue stream out of it.

It is. If it would be totally banned it would result in an emergence of a black market. We have the same thing on Hungary, there is one state controlled gambling company that's under heavy regulation (18+ only, full with warning signs against gambling, barely any advertisements, has only a few old-school products like scratch cards)

Sure a black market would be worse, but why not just regulate it. Government shouldn't have an incentive to ensure that gambling exists and remains profitable which they do so long as they're running it. Government shouldn't be directly engaged in the business of any vice for that reason.

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#182

Post by majormajor »

Animats wrote: post #150

China is not "smashing its tech industry". It's cracking down on private Internet companies that acquired too much power through network effects. This is completely consistent with CCP doctrine. Anything that central has to be state-owned. Xi declared this year that while digitization is important, “we must recognize the fundamental importance of the real economy… and never deindustrialize.” Right. China, remember, h…

> “we must recognize the fundamental importance of the real economy… and never deindustrialize.”

This hasn't been really put to the test yet, has it? What's the cost of labor delta compared to the places where outsourcing from China would be attractive currently?

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#183

Post by crossroadsguy »

triceratops wrote: post #64
caeril wrote: post #11

> China may simply see things differently. It’s possible that the Chinese government has decided that the profits of companies like Alibaba and Tencent come more from rents than from actual value added Excellent observation, and I hope, for China's sake, that this is the reason. The United States is likely in for a long-term rude awakening when it finally realizes that an economy predicated on negative-value-add acti…

Facebook, sure. Why Netflix? TV and movies have always been around. The US owes its status as a cultural superpower to Hollywood. Too much TV and movie-watching isn't good for a nation, sure, but you could make that argument about any pastime.

Netflix has one of darkest UX patterns hidden in plain sight. Or not even hidden maybe.

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#184

Post by dufdudh »

caeril wrote: post #11

> China may simply see things differently. It’s possible that the Chinese government has decided that the profits of companies like Alibaba and Tencent come more from rents than from actual value added Excellent observation, and I hope, for China's sake, that this is the reason. The United States is likely in for a long-term rude awakening when it finally realizes that an economy predicated on negative-value-add acti…

I don't know how to tell you this but all of the things you listed are fine and wildly common both in China and SEA in general. I'm not sure if you were just attacking social media at large but that too is wildly popular. Facebook can only dream of having the social integration that Weechat enjoys.

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#185

Post by ativzzz »

_448 wrote: post #105

The USA tech industry did start with hard-tech. The hint is in the name "Silicon Valley". The spur in innovation in the American tech industry started with companies working on projects from the defence and aerospace industry. Along the way they lost the plot, mostly during the dot-com bubble when the investment/banking/family-office industry(that does not understand tech) got heavily involved into it to make quick m…

It's much easier for Israel to justify investing into "hard" tech that accelerates military power because they are surrounded by ideological enemies and are perpetually at war.

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#186

Post by lasagnaphil »

_448 wrote: post #105

The USA tech industry did start with hard-tech. The hint is in the name "Silicon Valley". The spur in innovation in the American tech industry started with companies working on projects from the defence and aerospace industry. Along the way they lost the plot, mostly during the dot-com bubble when the investment/banking/family-office industry(that does not understand tech) got heavily involved into it to make quick m…

It's illuminating (and equally harrowing) to see how much of the fundamental technology we have today has been researched and invented by the military (the Internet is one prime example), in stark contrast to the widespread belief among today's SV techies that free market innovation is what's driving the tech.

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#187

Post by [deleted] »

bennysomething wrote: post #51
tablespoon wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or even more succinctly: financial value != value to society. Sometimes there's alignment, but very frequently there is not.

Who's "value to society" people's values vary that's why we have markets so people can decide what they value by deciding to buy it.

[deleted]

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#188

Post by sangnoir »

throwaway0a5e wrote: post #161
jurmous wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the Netherlands gambling is either done by the state owned company with all profit going to state treasury or heavily regulated when done online. All to prevent gambling addiction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holland_Casino It seems harmful to let gambling be unregulated... Even loot boxes in games are illegal https://boundingintocomics.com/2020/10/30/netherlands-rules-...

>It seems harmful to let gambling be unregulated... It seems barely any better make a state revenue stream out of it.

This view is predicated on whether you trust your government to do the right thing or not. The government is already trusted with policy and handling opiates, without going Perdue pharma

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#189

Post by allopp »

throwaway0a5e wrote: post #161
jurmous wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the Netherlands gambling is either done by the state owned company with all profit going to state treasury or heavily regulated when done online. All to prevent gambling addiction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holland_Casino It seems harmful to let gambling be unregulated... Even loot boxes in games are illegal https://boundingintocomics.com/2020/10/30/netherlands-rules-...

>It seems harmful to let gambling be unregulated... It seems barely any better make a state revenue stream out of it.

Realistically, your choices are:

- corporation’s primary revenue stream

- local government’s major revenue stream

- state/federal government’s minor revenue stream

- criminal org’s major revenue stream (prohibition)

Given those choices, state+ size governments are least likely to paperclip-optimize for gambling “revenue”, and federal/national government would care the most about negative externalities since they compete with other nations, on metrics removed from raw “tax” revenue.

And the US has state lottos already.

Re: Why is China smashing its tech industry?

#190

Post by tomjen3 »

mc32 wrote: post #85
triceratops wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Facebook, sure. Why Netflix? TV and movies have always been around. The US owes its status as a cultural superpower to Hollywood. Too much TV and movie-watching isn't good for a nation, sure, but you could make that argument about any pastime.

Netflix provides on-demand all you can view content. It doesn’t require any “cooling period” before the next episode. You don’t have to engage with family, friends or work. You can stream all day and live in fantasyland.

That was the case with cable and, before that, radio.
Post reply on HN