Copy culture

By Phil Taylor.

Counterfeits in China are nothing new. But sophisticated look-alike products produced by entrepreneurs and openly and actively promoted as identical to – or better than – the originals, are a more recent phenomenon. The trend, and the philosophy behind it, is known as shanzhai (山寨). It is rapidly becoming one of the biggest threats to companies with legitimate rights to protect.

The term comes originally from Cantonese slang: although the literal meaning of the Chinese expression is mountain village, in Guangdong province it has been used for many years to refer to badly-equipped, small-town factories which sprung up in the countryside after Deng Xiaoping's reforms in the late 1970s. In the past two years, the term has gone mainstream and is now widely used across China as a term referring to look-alikes, parodies, or knock-off products. One online commentator has translated the expression as poor man's: the popular HiPhone, which is probably the most hi-tech and convincing copy of Apple's iPhone and is freely available in mainland China and online, could be regarded as the poor man's iPhone.

The shanzhai phenomenon started with mobile phones and spread to other small electronic devices such as MP3 players and watches. Counterfeiters are now creating shanzhai versions of everything from cars to TV programmes and even the Bird's Nest stadium (which can be found in Chongqing and is made of bamboo). In rural areas, shanzhai pop concerts featuring lookalike singing stars have become popular, providing a low-cost alternative for poorer members of society. The people who produce these goods or events are regarding by some as working-class heroes, similar to Robin Hood in western culture.