Jul 13, 2022, 8:15 am
Last edit by: moondog
The "FT People on WeChat" group
Our group chat is comprised of FT members and friends of FT members. We talk about pretty much anything except for politics (because Papa Bear has the ability to watch over us). The group has its own QR code, but it has a short shelf life (e.g. about 5 days), so I'm not including it here. The easiest way to join is to add me as a contact (moondogsh) and let me put you in the group.
Contacting Tencent Customer Support
If you want to get in touch with Tencent customer service (e.g. to update your passport number or change your name format so it aligns with your bank accounts), most web resources will advise you to simply message the "WeChat Team" contact. It is extremely difficult to get a human response when using this approach. Calling them also results in a bot experience.
However, the following drill works as of July 2022 (specific menu options can always change, of course; the key is getting yourself to step 5 below):
1. Dial 95716 (or +86 4009100100 from outside of China)
2. Select option 1 for personal accounts
3. Enter your connected phone number followed by #
3. Select option 2 for other questions
4. The bot will ask you to describe your issue using voice; just speak to it in English; it won't understand and will ask you to repeat 3-5 times before giving up
5. Now, the bot will give you ~8 menu options; through trial and error, I can state that option 7 is good for immediate transfer to a human (some of the others might work as well)
6. When the representative picks up, you definitely need to speak Chinese, but your request is presumably fairly easy to convey, and their responses are also pretty simple
7. They might want to move the conversation over to WeChat; this is okay because they will send you an invite to a special customer service queue, which is only ~60% automated
Our group chat is comprised of FT members and friends of FT members. We talk about pretty much anything except for politics (because Papa Bear has the ability to watch over us). The group has its own QR code, but it has a short shelf life (e.g. about 5 days), so I'm not including it here. The easiest way to join is to add me as a contact (moondogsh) and let me put you in the group.
Contacting Tencent Customer Support
If you want to get in touch with Tencent customer service (e.g. to update your passport number or change your name format so it aligns with your bank accounts), most web resources will advise you to simply message the "WeChat Team" contact. It is extremely difficult to get a human response when using this approach. Calling them also results in a bot experience.
However, the following drill works as of July 2022 (specific menu options can always change, of course; the key is getting yourself to step 5 below):
1. Dial 95716 (or +86 4009100100 from outside of China)
2. Select option 1 for personal accounts
3. Enter your connected phone number followed by #
3. Select option 2 for other questions
4. The bot will ask you to describe your issue using voice; just speak to it in English; it won't understand and will ask you to repeat 3-5 times before giving up
5. Now, the bot will give you ~8 menu options; through trial and error, I can state that option 7 is good for immediate transfer to a human (some of the others might work as well)
6. When the representative picks up, you definitely need to speak Chinese, but your request is presumably fairly easy to convey, and their responses are also pretty simple
7. They might want to move the conversation over to WeChat; this is okay because they will send you an invite to a special customer service queue, which is only ~60% automated
wechat（微信）
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:15 am
#286
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With regards to Tiktok, they are in talks with Microsoft to take over their US, Australian, New Zealand Operations. There was a report Microsoft wants to purchase all of Tiktok. They are floating a 30-50 Billion dollar price. I guess we will see what happens to Tiktok and Wechat in 45 days. On a side note, India really went to town banning dozens of Chinese apps.
I think India's problems with China is far bigger than the US. Whether we agree with the decision or not, India is clearly not afraid of challenging China despite being the weaker power.
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:16 am
#287
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Aug 14, 2020 | 4:17 am
#288
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TikTok and WeChat are two different platforms serving different needs. I'm not sure how you can even say TikTok is well positioned to top WeChat.
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:19 am
#289
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Tencent made a half hearted attempt to enter the US market about 8 years ago. They gave up and focused on South America. If the US blocks them, we won't lose any sleep, and trump will look good.
TT is a different beast. I don't fully understand it yet, but it has serious momentum.
Basically, during the course of the past 20 years, we went from actually calling each other to SMS, msn, and finally wx. Tik tok is the new frontier.
TT is a different beast. I don't fully understand it yet, but it has serious momentum.
Basically, during the course of the past 20 years, we went from actually calling each other to SMS, msn, and finally wx. Tik tok is the new frontier.
Again, they're two different platforms serving different audiences. Maybe I'm missing something here, but I don't see how you can draw such a conclusion.
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:27 am
#290
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-they have a sizable user base
-expanding into messaging is not difficult
-Wechat has become a bit tired, and has already had a 9 year run (i.e. longer than MSN during its heyday)
-that having been said, Tencent has A LOT more capital at its disposal, and continues to add new features to Wechat
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:33 am
#291
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A couple of things. If WeChat is blocked, believe me, it'll be headlines around the world.
Why are you using WeChat to talk to your mom? Does FaceTime work in China? If so, you should use it and you'll get encryption. I never tried FaceTime in China, but I recalled iMessage worked for me before.
Why are you using WeChat to talk to your mom? Does FaceTime work in China? If so, you should use it and you'll get encryption. I never tried FaceTime in China, but I recalled iMessage worked for me before.
2. Facetime certainly works with VPN, but I didn't want to overload my mom with apps
3. I actually don't think wx will get killed in the US, but if it does, I think switching to a different app is probably easier than walking mom through the VPN process
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:35 am
#292
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I happen to work in this space, and Tiktok most certainly wants to topple Wechat.
-they have a sizable user base
-expanding into messaging is not difficult
-Wechat has become a bit tired, and has already had a 9 year run (i.e. longer than MSN during its heyday)
-that having been said, Tencent has A LOT more capital at its disposal, and continues to add new features to Wechat
-they have a sizable user base
-expanding into messaging is not difficult
-Wechat has become a bit tired, and has already had a 9 year run (i.e. longer than MSN during its heyday)
-that having been said, Tencent has A LOT more capital at its disposal, and continues to add new features to Wechat
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:36 am
#293
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1. We've been using Wechat for years
2. Facetime certainly works with VPN, but I didn't want to overload my mom with apps
3. I actually don't think wx will get killed in the US, but if it does, I think switching to a different app is probably easier than walking mom through the VPN process
2. Facetime certainly works with VPN, but I didn't want to overload my mom with apps
3. I actually don't think wx will get killed in the US, but if it does, I think switching to a different app is probably easier than walking mom through the VPN process
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:50 am
#294
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[QUOTE=lsquare;32603500]At this point in time, TikTok is mostly video right? WeChat is more than just messaging as you know. If TikTok wants to be the next WeChat, it's going to take years and massive amount of investment to get there. At the end of the day, if TikTok builds it, will the users come? If you're in WeChat, what do you gain by going to TikTok?[/QUOTE]
1. Yes, Tiktok is mostly video, but expanding their messaging capabilities is pretty easy
2. Payment, which requires bank integration plus infrastructure, is a much larger hurdle
3. Completely replicating Wechat would certainly require a lot of investment, but they don't need to everything at once
4. The user base is already pretty solid; I'm not a fan, but kids seem to love it, and my clients want to engage them as they get older
5. Personally, I see no obvious advantages to Tiktok from a user standpoint; it just happens to be a hot product
6. Wechat was not appreciably different from QQ when it first launched (same source code, even). However, people gravitated towards it because it was new
1. Yes, Tiktok is mostly video, but expanding their messaging capabilities is pretty easy
2. Payment, which requires bank integration plus infrastructure, is a much larger hurdle
3. Completely replicating Wechat would certainly require a lot of investment, but they don't need to everything at once
4. The user base is already pretty solid; I'm not a fan, but kids seem to love it, and my clients want to engage them as they get older
5. Personally, I see no obvious advantages to Tiktok from a user standpoint; it just happens to be a hot product
6. Wechat was not appreciably different from QQ when it first launched (same source code, even). However, people gravitated towards it because it was new
Aug 14, 2020 | 4:54 am
#295
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Aug 14, 2020 | 4:58 am
#296
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FaceTime is pre-installed on both iOS and macOS. It is not available on any other OS.
Aug 14, 2020 | 5:28 am
#297
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Thanks for the tip. I don't have an iPhone, and I rarely use my Mac. Mom is droid only, so I've been trying to think of ways to make this as easy as possible for her in the event wx is actually blocked in the US. VPN setup would likely drive her bonkers, so Hangouts might be the best bet.
Aug 14, 2020 | 6:45 am
#298
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Thanks for the tip. I don't have an iPhone, and I rarely use my Mac. Mom is droid only, so I've been trying to think of ways to make this as easy as possible for her in the event wx is actually blocked in the US. VPN setup would likely drive her bonkers, so Hangouts might be the best bet.
Aug 14, 2020 | 7:29 am
#299
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At least during the two years I was in Shanghai, FaceTime worked fine either with or without a VPN. I had regularly scheduled sessions weekly with my family back in the US.
