With Help From US Majors, China’s Sohu Offers E-Commerce

With assistance from Microsoft, Intel and Compaq, Sohu has rolled out an e-commerce service that permits users to buy or bid for products online.

To implement the e-commerce offerings, Sohu utilized Intel’s architecture, the Microsoft Commercial Internet System (MCIS), and Compaq’s hardware and payment fulfillment system.

Sohu firmly believes in China’s e-commerce market potential and has been striving to develop an integrated and reliable web-based platform to implement, said Charles Zhang, Sohu’s CEO.

“Sohu.com enjoys exceptional advantages of pioneering e-commerce in China,” said Zhang. “We have China’s most powerful Internet brand and the largest group of loyal users.”

Sohu’s e-commerce service is running head-to-head with another local heavyweight, Netease.com, which tested an online auction service in July and is launching an e-commerce channel this month.

Sohu launched an online auction earlier this month selling Compaq computers to the Chinese Web audience.