Advertisement
China’s e-commerce platforms ban keyword search for Squid Game-related products, but merchants find workarounds
- An online check yielded no results for a keyword search using ‘Squid Game’ on shopping platforms Taobao, JD.com and Pinduoduo
- Merchants have devised workarounds for consumers to find Squid Game-related goods on these platforms using keywords such as ‘squid mask’ and ‘Halloween costume’
Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
6
China’s major e-commerce platforms have apparently banned keyword search for products related to hit Netflix show Squid Game , which has prompted merchants to devise workarounds for consumers to find these goods online.
An online check by the South China Morning Post yielded no results for a keyword search using “Squid Game” on Taobao Marketplace, JD.com and Pinduoduo. Taobao, China’s largest online shopping platform, is operated by Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the Post.
Alibaba, Pinduoduo and JD.com did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.
Products related to Squid Game – a dystopian South Korean drama series that became a global hit upon its release in September – can still be found on those major Chinese shopping platforms by using alternative keywords such as “squid mask”, “Halloween costume” and “Korea” to search, according to the Post’s online check.
An online toy merchant surnamed Zeng, who is based in Yiwu city in eastern Zhejiang province, said he found out on Monday that his Squid Game-related products could not be seen on the major e-commerce platforms using the show’s title as a keyword search.
02:37
Netflix Squid Game honeycomb toffee-maker sees business boom after South Korean series tops charts
Netflix Squid Game honeycomb toffee-maker sees business boom after South Korean series tops charts
“We tried other words such as ‘squid mask’, which worked [to search for our products],” said Zeng, who did not want to use his full name because of potential copyright issues. “Based on our experience, only ‘Squid Game’ can’t be used to search on these platforms.”
Advertisement