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To: CPAMarty who wrote (26645)	12/14/1997 11:38:00 AM
From: John Rieman	Respond to of 50808

Men in China are changing their buying habits. Brands are, "more and more"....................................... china-window.com Today' Shanghainese men change their sense of consumption ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A recent survey program, conducted by Huanan International Market Research Company, shows the sense of consumption of today's Shanghainese men. Most of them agree that brand represents man's characteristics to some degree. Therefore, they lay stress on brand which will match their knowledge, social position and job. The older men will choose the famous brands which can represent success and social position, such as Rolext, XO and Pike. While the young men will choose the brands which are individual and diverse, such as Nike, and 555. They think that these brands represent vigor, sport, liberty, leisure and taste. That's why these brands attract their attention. In Shanghai, women will be in charge of daily shopping while men are in charge of shopping the large goods, such as household appliances. Cigarette and alcohol are the most popular goods to men. In Shanghai, the smokers are getting more and more younger. But the total number gets no change. At present, they smoke famous cigarettes of China and imported ones. The taste is tend to be delicate. The white-collars working in JV and foreign-funded enterprises are keen on imported cigarettes. As for drink, the drinking of white spirit and millet wine is getting little and little while the drink of wine and beer is getting more and more. And foreign alcohol is not popular as it is too expensive and people learn little about the taste difference between those foreign spirits. With the improvement of living, men in Shanghai begin to pay more attention to their diet and the nourition of food. They hope to get a healthy body. But most of them haven't turn to sport and health-care for help. The other things which attract modern men in Shanghai are car and computer. Since the price of a car is too expensive to Chinese consumer and most of the cars advertising are on the first-class magazines, the common consumers learn little about these products. The use of computer, especially the popularization of Internet, has caused a great change in people's living. Although the older have realized the popularization in future society, they only regard it as necessary tool in office. The young consumers take great interest in Internet. A lot of them pay more attention to the study of computer and some of them have bought computers. The users of Internet are getting more and more. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ E-mail: shaintnt@prodigychina.com <Picture>

To: CPAMarty who wrote (26645)	12/14/1997 6:10:00 PM
From: John Rieman	Respond to of 50808

DVD............................ asiansources.com Steep price of hardware, software seen as temporary setback <Picture>Korean giants already make second-generation DVDs, expect strong worldwide demand for the line Contents EVEN THE staunchest proponents of the DVD player admit that the line has yet to meet sales expectations. But with this year's first-quarter rollout in the United States successfully achieved, and a market foothold won, optimism is at last running high. Distributors, dealers and retailers alike see DVD as the driving force behind a forecast resurgence of consumer electronics sales. All probable obstacles to the growth of the line are being addressed, including the key issue of software shortages. Entertainment suppliers, movie studios and manufacturers have all vowed to step up the release of DVD titles this year, and this is bringing down prices to more reasonable levels, they say. Typically, a movie on DVD currently retails for between $24.99 and $29.99 in the United States. And a US industry association promoting the product said that from fewer than 300 going into the fourth quarter, the number of DVD titles is forecast to more than double by the end of 1997. As Hollywood now appears to have bought into the technology, further, rapid growth can be expected. Developments have been slower in Europe, where standardization issues have held up business. But a similar picture is now emerging, with a group of movie studios planning to launch about 100 DVD titles in Europe in the first quarter of the year. By year-end, they expect the total to top 250. Their move is being complemented by the leading hardware manufacturers, which have unveiled plans to release LD-compatible DVD players by spring. Predictions also see the eventual lowering of hardware prices in the same way that prices of CD players fell. A top-end, multifeatured Sony model sells for about $1,000 in the United States. One Hong Kong manufacturer expects to produce its own DVD player for less than $300, FOB. That's when the mass market is ready. Elsewhere in Asia, production is already underway. The Korean chaebols are moving into second-generation supply, including production of a portable model by Samsung. And in China, one firm launched the country's first DVD player in August last year. Full production is scheduled to begin mid-1998. - Asian Sources Electronics, January 1998