How Apple lost China to two unknown smartphone firms

Two years ago, two small firms Oppo and Vivo couldn’t crack the top five in China’s smartphone market. Now they outrank everyone after elbowing Apple aside, thanks to people like Cheng Xiaoning.

Ms Cheng runs a thriving electronics store in the rural town of Miaoxia, tapping into her WeChat social media account to promote the brands that pay the biggest commission, and in her case that’s Oppo and Vivo.

While such payments start at about 40 yuan (€5.50), they escalate for more expensive handsets and reach almost 200 yuan for Oppo’s high-end smartphones.