A picture illustration shows a WeChat app icon in Beijing Mario Chalmers Heat Jersey , December 5, 2013.
Ford Motor Co (F.N) wants Tencent Holdings Ltd (0700.HK) to tailor its popular chatting app for the firm's cars in China, as automakers in the world's largest market vie for drivers that care about high-tech features as much as engine size.

Rivals including Daimler (DAIGn.DE) and Nissan Motor Co Ltd (7201.T) are also looking at ways to give drivers safe, hands-free access to mobile apps in China, home to the world's largest number of smartphone users. WeChat is China's most prevalent chatting app, with about half a billion active monthly users.

"There's a demand from our customers," David Huang, a senior engineer who heads Ford's Asia Pacific connected services unit, told Reuters. "People want to stay connected, stay informed and stay entertained all the time, even when they're driving."

Ford is in talks with Tencent over the business aspects of putting the app in its cars, Huang said. Tencent declined to comment.

Huang said Ford envisages drivers syncing their phone to the car's software system and controlling specific WeChat functions, chosen by Tencent and then certified by Ford as safe, through voice commands or limited use of buttons.

Making WeChat and other apps convenient, safe and legal to use while driving could help automakers gain market share in China, especially as auto sales growth eases in a slowing economy. Yale Zhang, managing director of Shanghai-based consultancy Automotive Foresight, said connectivity was a key deciding factor for Chinese customers buying a car.

"Those kind of things are the fundamental things people will consider," he added.

Many Chinese use WeChat's free voice messaging feature instead of phone calls, holding up their smartphones like a walkie-talkie as they speak, tap and listen to replies.

They often do that while they are driving, breaking a 2004 traffic law that bans any behavior that hinders safe driving.

"In a car, if you had software that can sync with your WeChat, that would be very useful," said Mao Yanan, a Beijing resident who admits to holding her phone to use the app while driving.

Other automakers are also eyeing apps and online services.

In August, General Motors Co (GM.N) and Tencent launched a platform for GM owners to use WeChat to find a nearby dealership or send the location of their car to a friend.

Nissan wants the app in its cars at some point, a spokeswoman said. Daimler, which owns the Mercedes-Benz brand popular in China, is also researching how to include apps and services from Tencent and rivals Baidu Inc (BIDU.O) and Alibaba Group Holding (BABA.N) in its cars, the company's China head Hubertus Troska said.

"The race is on, very clearly," Troska told reporters in Beijing last week.

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CHINESE retail giant Suning Commerce Group Co Ltd, set to tie up a deal for Italian soccer club Inter Milan, is already eying bigger ambitions: controlling a global sports empire stretching from soccer clubs to online broadcasting.

Suning and Inter Milan are due to make an announcement in Nanjing today, widely expected to confirm that Suning will buy a majority stake in the Italian soccer club.

Amid a wider push by China to increase its standing in the game, Suning’s deal for the 2010 European champions is just the start.

The Chinese electronics retailer is seeking deals to help create a global sporting “ecosystem,” according to a Suning Sports Group document seen by Reuters.

This network would include club ownership, sports media rights, player agencies, training institutions, broadcast platforms, content production and sports-related e-commerce, the document shows.

“Suning Sports aims, through strategic expansion and acquisitions, to establish a sporting ecosystem along the whole supply chain,” it said in a 20-page presentation outlining its ambitions for the sports business.

A majority stake in Inter Milan would be a big step toward this. It would be a watershed moment for China’s investment in the game, making Suning the first mainland Chinese business to control a major European soccer power.

Suning will also look to become a leader globally in sports media and online, including “creating high-quality sports content” and “establishing a professional broadcast platform,” it said in the presentation.

Suning declined to comment.

Suning, which has annual revenues topping US$20 billion, already has some blocks in place: it owns local club Jiangsu Suning and has splashed millions of dollars on players such as Brazil’s Alex Teixeira and former Chelsea midfielder Ramires.

It also has ties with Spanish champions FC Barcelona, England’s Liverpool FC and a stake in Chinese online content platform PPTV, with sporting content including the Chinese Super League as well as Euro 2016 starting later this month.

The drive tallies with President Xi Jinping’s own goals, which includes ambitious plan to create a domestic sports industry worth US$850 billion by 2025. Xi wants China to one day host, and win, the World Cup.

“Suning is definitely now seen as a bit of a national champion, on par with the likes of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Dalian Wanda,” said Mark Dreyer, Beijing-based founder of sports information website China Sports Insider.

“I wouldn’t be surprised to see more investments into the game from Suning in the near future, as it looks to piece together assets in various key areas of the business.”

Chinese investors already have minority stakes in Manchester City, Atletico Madrid and New York City FC, while smaller Spanish club Espanyol and England’s Aston Villa are Chinese-owned. AC Milan is also in talks to sell a majority stake to a group of Chinese investors.

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