Finnish software entrepreneurs head to China
Lehtikuva / Mikko Stig Finnish companies heading to the Chinese market must take into consideration cultural differences between the two countries.According to the Chairman of the Finnish Software Entrepreneurs Association, Jaakko Salminen, the Chinese have a strong desire to grow and develop, and through that the willingness to make the necessary investments.
– Attitudes towards the Internet and understanding of copyrights may pose some challenges, but entry into the Chinese market may in many ways be easier than entering for instance the US or German markets. The clients are more likely to be interested in the product offering of a Finnish software company than those on the ruthlessly competing western markets, Salminen tells.
The Finnish Software Entrepreneurs Association has many encouraging examples of Finnish companies operating in the Chinese market. Both Frosmo Oy, specialist in digital sales tools for social networks and Rightware Oy, developer of user interface technologies, have operated successfully in China for three years already.
– We decided to head to China immediately upon establishing the company. When all other game companies went to the United States and the UK, we simply decided to head to the opposite direction, says Frosmo CEO Mikael Gummerus.
Rightware CEO Tero Sarkkinen sees that China is one of today’s most potential markets. Market there is two hundred times bigger than that of Finland. He also believes that now is a much easier time to gain a foothold in the Chinese market than in five years time when competition gets harder.
The Finnish Software Entrepreneurs Association has already for 20 years operated as a lobbyist in the sector. The association is currently in the process of investigating different means of supporting Finnish software companies in their attempt to enter the Chinese market.
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