Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba Group, along with media corporation Sina and Yunfeng Capital, on Wednesday announced the formation of Alibaba Sports Group, which aims to "transform China's sports industry through internet-enabled technology," according to James Griffiths of the SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST. Alibaba said in a statement that the new group will "leverage the e-commerce firm's existing sales and logistics ecosystem, as well as the experience and connections" of its new CEO, Zhang Dazhong, former VP of the Shanghai Media Group. It did not elaborate on how the partnership will work or "what content it will produce or distribute." Alibaba Group CEO Daniel Zhang said, "Sports has the enduring ability to create shared happiness and encourage healthy lifestyles." The group said in a statement that integrated e-commerce, media, marketing, video, home entertainment, cloud computing and other Internet-enabled technologies will help "to form a sports platform that will participate in different aspects of the professional sports industry, including sports copyrights, sports media, events [and] ticketing" (SCMP, 9/9). FORBES' Russell Flannery reported the announcement comes against "the backdrop of investor concerns about the pace of growth at Alibaba Group following its world-record IPO in the U.S. last year." The stock has lost "about half of hits value" since late '14 and is trading below its $68 IPO price. It lost 4.7% to close at an all-time low of $60.91 overnight in N.Y. The "potentially volatile intersection of entertainment and politics in China was underscored this week" when planned concerts in Beijing and Shanghai by U.S. rock group Bon Jovi promoted in part by AEG of the U.S. were "reportedly ordered cancelled just days before scheduled" after the government discovered a band video recorded years ago "included an image of the Dalai Lama." The government-published Shanghai Daily noted, "The Dalai Lama, who is based in India, is a violent separatist" (FORBES, 9/8). In Beijing, Ma Si reported this is "not the first time that Alibaba has branched out into the sports sector." Last June, the company spent 1.2B yuan for a 50% stake in Guangzhou Evergrande Football Club, which was later rebranded as Guangzhou Evergrand Taobao. The company's efforts come amid a "growing domestic appetite for more and better sports content." The move is also part of the Internet conglomerate's "broad efforts to boost and diversify revenue sources as the company faces slower growth" (CHINA DAILY, 9/9).
