The Chinese market is known for cheap iPhone knockoffs, fake Apple Stores, and now they have the first "fake" Steve Jobs, as a businessman, in order to increase the revenue of his mobile phone manufacturing company, imitates the deceased former CEO of Apple to the point of disgust.
The reason is Lei Jun and his company Xiaomi, which is already called in China as “the Apple of the East”. As you can see from the photo below, he presents his company’s new phones on stage in the same way that Steve Jobs once did for Apple products. His clothing and even his stage setup with his lines are an accurate representation of the former Apple CEO.
The New York Times newspaper did an in-depth report on Lei Jun, stating that he has been cultivating the Steve Jobs style for years and that his company has made many millions selling smartphones that are similar in appearance to the iPhone.
In a country where products like iPhones are made but rarely invented, Lei Jun — entrepreneur, billionaire and professed Jobs acolyte — is positioning himself and his company as figurative heirs of Mr. Jobs. The Chinese media have nicknamed his company, Xiaomi, the “Apple of the East.”
The title is a stretch, by almost any measure. But Mr. Lei nevertheless is carefully cultivating a Jobsian image here, right down to his jeans and dark shirts. He is also selling millions of mobile phones that look a lot like iPhones. Chinese consumers — and deep-pocketed investors overseas — seem to be believers.
And yet Mr. Lei's biggest believer may be himself. He bounds onto podiums to introduce new cellphones. He proclaims things that may, to many, sound outlandish.
Lei Jun himself claims to be a fanatical fan of Steve Jobs since he was still in college, with his obsession having now made him a billionaire in his country!!
Dimitrios Georgoulas @ GreekAppleNews
