ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 gives primary attention to some basic political features of Alibaba, as the company’s spectacular rise in today’s transnational digital capitalism has propelled the Chinese state both increasingly to involve the company in its political and policymaking apparatus and to keep its power and influence in check. To examine the complex interplay between the state and capital in forming this global media giant, this chapter focuses on the following three questions: (1) Is Alibaba a Chinese company? – highlighting the role of transnational capital in the formation and transformation of this digital empire; (2) Is Alibaba a state-controlled company? – foregrounding the complex relationship between Alibaba and different state agencies; (3) Is Alibaba a capitalist company? – offering some preliminary thoughts toward the formation of social class relations in and around China’s Internet industry.
