What’s new: The Beijing headquarters of Chinese video game giant NetEase Inc. have been shuttered after one of its employees tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday, according to a notice published by the local government that evening.
Haidian district has begun testing all NetEase staff and has disinfected the building’s communal areas, said the notice. In an internal email, NetEase told staff they were all required to leave the building after getting tested and self-isolate.
Over 4,100 people had been tested for Covid-19 as of Friday night, all negative, an internal notice sent by NetEase on Saturday said.
What’s the context: The internal email said the NetEase case is linked to the recent flare-up in the city’s suburban Daxing district, where the authorities have called on all residents to get tested for Covid-19.
Tech companies who have offices near the NetEase building include Sina Corp., Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Baidu Inc.The three companies told Caixin that they haven’t received any notice from the government regarding Covid-19 testing of their staff.
One person working at Sina told Caixin that employees have been asked to work from home, while a member of Tencent staff said their employer had only asked people who visitedthe NetEase headquarters or had contact with people who had to inform the company.
Contact reporter Lu Yutong (yutonglu@caixin.com) and editor Joshua Dummer (joshuadummer@caixin.com)
