Tencent ranks 8th in BrandZ(TM) global brand rankings; connects digital economy to customers and businesses to drive global impact

SHENZHEN, China, June 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Tencent Holdings Limited, a leading provider of internet value added services in China, is the first ever Chinese brand to rank 8th in The 2017 BrandZ™ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands Ranking from WPP. Tencent has grown to prominence as a Chinese brand, listed first on BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Chinese Brands in 2017 for the third year running, and has now become truly global in its recognition.

According to Kantar Millward Brown, Tencent's appearance in the top 10 is a highlight of the year. Tencent saw significant growth of its social platform WeChat and entered the top 10 with a brand value increase of 27% to $108.3 billion.

Tencent's senior executive vice president, advertising chairman, group marketing and global brand chairman SY Lau said: "We are delighted by this global recognition, and the rapid development of China's digital economy creates opportunities for us to further grow our brand. As part of our 'Connection' strategy, Tencent supports the digital transformation of businesses, and enables the connection of hundreds of millions of individuals and organizations around the globe through our interactive social platforms and the continuous development of new technology. In the age of Internet+, we realise it's the impact we can have on society that matters most."

With 938 million active Weixin and WeChat users and 861 million active QQ users, Tencent has become a primary enabler of the digital economy in China with value exceeding $3.6 trillion, ranking second behind the US, according to Tencent Research Institute. Tencent also plays a role as a global connector between east and west, most recently collaborating with multinational brands such as Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Starbucks to drive business in China.

As China's largest high-quality IP source platform, Tencent's pan-entertainment platform is committed to building a creative ecosystem that enables anyone with talent to make the most of their potential. On the WeChat platform, the number of WeChat official accounts has grown to nearly 20 million, with their fans enabling revenue streams. The platform has attracted 4 million network literature creators, hundreds of professional anime authors, and more than 50,000 animation contributors.

Tencent also set up an open platform for start-up companies to provide mentoring, resource matching, accelerated incubation and other services to help start-up companies to grow rapidly. The platform for the registration of entrepreneurs has attracted more than 6 million entrepreneurs and led to the creation of 30 listed companies that have a combined revenue of more than $2 billion.

Tencent is aware of technology's impact on society at large and has leveraged its technology through its brands and empowering customers. Since 2015, Tencent public welfare programs have involved hundreds of public organizations in China as well as well-known enterprises to create China's first Internet Public Service campaign known as "9.9 Charity Day". In 2016 "9.9 Charity Day" activities saw a total of 6.77 million people donating more than RMB 305M / $44M. Additional CSR initiatives Tencent brands have created include an alert feature on QQ & face recognition technology on WeChat for parents in China to search for missing children, as well as various new formats of charity donation by technology such as "Reading for the Blind," allowing individuals to record audio books for the visually impaired.

"The core value of Tencent's brand is its hundreds of millions of users: we solve users' 'pain points' through technology while providing a platform for individual businesses to build their own brands by helping them to establish connections with users," Lau said. "Technology is a social enterprise, with millions of brands together to build a collaborative digital 'ecosystem.' I believe that the potential of the Tencent platform to increase the combined value of individual brands exceeds even the value of the Tencent brand."

Lau will be delivering a keynote address on the Social Impact of Exponential Technologies on 15th June at VivaTech in Paris, a hub for the world's innovators, tech-lovers and pioneers of the future which will change business and society for tomorrow.

About Tencent

Tencent uses technology to enrich the lives of Internet users. Every day, hundreds of millions of people communicate, share experiences, consume information and seek entertainment through our integrated platforms. Tencent's diversified services include QQ, Weixin/ WeChat for communications; Qzone for social networking; QQ Game Platform for online games; QQ.com and Tencent News for information and Tencent Video for video content.

Tencent was founded in Shenzhen in 1998 and went public on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2004. The Company is one of the constituent stocks of the Hang Seng Index. Tencent seeks to evolve with the Internet by investing in innovation, providing a mutually beneficial environment for partners, and staying close to users.

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SOURCE Tencent Holdings Limited