Alibaba $65 Set-Top Box Wasu Rainbow, Goes On Sale In China

The largest e-commerce company in China Alibaba-powered set-top box “Wasu Rainbow,” targeted at budget conscious households, goes on sale in China for $65. It is retailing at CNY298 ($49) for a limited period, a discount of CNY100 ($16) from the usual price of CNY398 ($65).

It runs on a Linux operating system and stream content such as TV shows and movies to mobile devices — connect TVs to the Internet and provide a host of Alibaba services.

>> Box Wasu Rainbow

Features may include such as online shopping and paying pills directly through the device, via Alibaba’s existing service Alipay.

The Wasu Rainbow, developed by Chinese digital TV company Wasu Media Holding, has gone on sale today on daily deals site Juhuasuan.

The cooperation between Chinese e-commerce giant, Alibaba, and Wasu Media could generate a competitive edge as Alibaba has a wide user base and Wasu Media has a comprehensive supply of content for digital television.

Wasu Media is one of the first companies to receive an Internet TV license from the government.

Chinese e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group has been diversifying a lot in the past year – and is keen to be a lot more social. A few months ago the company invested $586 million in Sina Weibo, China’s hottest social network.