Recently, traditional toy “bamboo cicada” related videos were accused of indirectly mocking Huawei, and were taken down from multiple social media and short video platforms by Huawei on the grounds of “damaging reputation”. The incident quickly made its way to the top of trending topics, with “bamboo cicada” becoming a “new joke” for some netizens, sparking a buying frenzy.
According to a mainland blogger’s video, he had previously shared a video introducing “bamboo cicada”, which did not specifically target any particular company or individual. However, it was reported by Huawei for “damaging the public image of the company and entrepreneurs, infringing on the reputation rights of the company and entrepreneurs”.
“I don’t know whose rights this toy has violated? Who is so embarrassed and angry about it?” the blogger said. “Even our childhood toys are not allowed to be played with, you are too overbearing.”
Bamboo cicada is a bamboo-made toy that resembles a cicada and makes a sound similar to a cicada when spun. According to the “Xiaoxiang Morning News”, the joke among some Chinese netizens about the atmosphere at Huawei’s press conferences is: whenever Huawei’s Terminal BG Chairman Yu Chengdong introduces new features, discloses parameters or prices, there is always a dense exclamation of “wow” from the audience, which has been edited into a fixed “sound effect” due to its frequent and exaggerated responses.
Some netizens noticed that the “wow wow” sound made when the bamboo cicada is spun is similar to the audience’s amazement at Huawei’s press conferences, so they imitated Yu Chengdong’s rhetoric, paired with captions such as “the best toy under 10 million”, creating short funny videos.
As a result, Huawei launched massive complaints to platforms citing “damage to reputation”, leading to the removal of a large number of related videos, with many innocent accounts also affected. The incident quickly escalated, sparking widespread discussions.
Netizens expressed their confusion, with comments like, “I am confused, what is the relationship between bamboo cicada and Yu Chengdong? Isn’t it too far-fetched?” “You don’t understand Huawei’s arrogance.” “Some brands have become untouchable objects, not even mentionable, this phenomenon in itself is abnormal.”
As public opinion continued to heat up, “bamboo cicada” quickly became a hit across the internet, with many netizens rushing to buy bamboo cicadas and imitating them to create funny videos.
One blogger commented, “This is no longer just a toy issue, but a brand communication crisis.”