From the perspective of its young and non-local founder, this case charts the growing pains of an Internet start-up in Hong Kong, established at the height of the dotcom craze in 1998, as it overcomes problems with investors, the local business environment, the collapse of the Internet bubble worldwide, and subsequent remodeling of the business in mid-2000.

The realisation that its most lucrative markets were on the other side of the world to the company’s headquarters in Hong Kong, raised a series of new challenges for Yat Siu, CEO of Outblaze, the Internet startup he had founded just a few years before and steered successfully through the chaos that surrounded the collapse of the dotcom bubble.

Founded in 1988 by Ren Zhengfei, Huawei has emerged as China's leading telecommunications equipment suppliers offering a product line and services similar to those of Cisco. Based in Shenzhen, and still private, Huawei has grown to sales of US$3 billion and 22,000 employees.

Founded in 1988 by Ren Zhengfei, Huawei has emerged as China's leading telecommunications equipment suppliers offering a product line and services similar to those of Cisco. Based in Shenzhen, and still private, Huawei has grown to sales of US$3 billion and 22,000 employees.

Having been hit with a lawsuit by Cisco Systems, the global industry leader, Ren Zhengfei, CEO of China’s Huawei Technologies, was concerned about the impact on the partnership agreement he had been crafting with Bruce Clafin, the head of Cisco’s long-time rival, 3Com. Would Clafin go ahead with their alliance?

Bruce Clafin, CEO of 3Com, was also required to consider his position vis-a-vis the alliance with Huawei and the Cisco suit. He was now being criticized widely for contemplating an alliance with an alleged counterfeiter. Should he continue with this partnership under fire?