Shanzhai
[1] Shanzhai products can include counterfeit consumer and electronic goods, which can involve the imitation and trademark infringement of brands and companies.
[6][7] The term shanzhai was first used for its literal meaning, which referred to defensible mountain forts and strongholds, usually in areas on the outer reaches of imperial government control.
During the Song dynasty (960–1279), shanzhai came to describe groups of bandits who opposed and evaded the corrupt authorities to perform deeds they saw as justified.
[1] Shanzhai goods are often regarded as rebelling against the established commercial market, adopting the spirit of opposition and individuality that the term was originally associated with during the Song dynasty.
[11]: 34 During the early-2000s, early instances of shanzhai production began, mostly with simple counterfeiting of electronic goods including DVD and MP3 players in cities such as those in the Pearl River Delta.
[12][5] In the mid-2000s, more advanced products such as smartphones were being created, with varying levels of skill and quality, leading to the term shanzhai being applied to counterfeit goods.
Copycat stars, TV programs, advertisements, pop songs, Spring Festival galas, Shenzhou 7 space capsules and Bird's Nest national stadiums have all made a splash on the Internet, each revealing their own special flavor and gaining instant popularity.
One of the most well-publicized examples of this was during Barack Obama's 2008 U.S. presidential election campaign, when some shanzhai mobile phone companies began to include Obama-based themes in their goods and advertisements.
[9][13] Another reason involved in the decline in shanzhai electronics may be related to the transition of MediaTek to producing chips for more established companies such as Xiaomi and Oppo, rather than just for the general consumer market.
[11]: 231 Due to the growth of internet access in China, websites have been created that attempt to spoof real ones, some with the intent to scam.
Some of these were said to include deceptive wording in their names, with terms such as "Central" (中央; zhōngyāng) "China" (中国; Zhōngguó or 中华; Zhōnghuá) and "National" (全国; quánguó) used to imitate real government websites and users.
[11]: 230 In some cases brought by foreign brand owners like New Balance, Air Jordan, Brooks, and Muji, the shanzhai manufacturers have prevailed because they registered their similar trademark first.
[11]: 34 After it was listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange in 2018, China's State Administration for Market Regulation announced probes into the firm based on reports of counterfeit materials available on the platform.
It imitates the multi-angle shooting, rapid cutting and stunts that are usually used in Hollywood action movies, yet it retains a grass-roots set up.
[23] In the Western world in countries such as the United States, shanzhai products are often viewed as humorous fakes due to their common use of misspelled or comical names imitating those of real companies.
