Duncan Clark, chairman of consultancy BDA China, told the BBC that the deal was a win-win for both companies.

BBC: Sina and Baidu team up in China to focus on mobile

Apple's "sales grew ahead of the company's ability to keep up, " said Duncan Clark, chairman of consulting firm BDA China Ltd.

WSJ: Apple Pays Small Price in China Case

The vast traffic they attract brings huge potential revenues and lots of useful data that could help them shape the internet in future, rather than merely following Western models, says Duncan Clark, chairman of BDA China, a consultancy.

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According to research firm BDA, China has around 220 million Internet users--nearly three times Germany's entire population.

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