RPA and Data100 Link Asian Panels

Tokyo-based full service MR company Research Panel Asia (RPA) has formed an alliance with Beijing-based Data100 Market Research to produce an online panel of 1.6 million respondents China. RPA already has 1.5m respondents in Japan and 150,000 in Korea.

The companies will use each other's panels through a data-sharing scheme and will also share panel operation know-how. The deal combines RPA's 400,000 proprietary Chinese panel with Data100's 1.2m and will include an agreed quality assurance process between the two companies.

Shogo Nakazato, CEO of RPA said: 'Given China's exponential growth, RPA recognizes that providing a reliable online panel resource meeting the demand of both size and data quality is critically important to increase its level of service to the market.'

May Tang, President of Data100, added: 'Data100 has extensively invested in both software technologies and panel management processes to make sure that our panel members are real, unique and engaged when they take our surveys.'

Data100 Market Research, founded in 2004, specializes in online research and has 200 plus employees in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. RPA, which has additional offices in Seoul, Shanghai and Los Angeles, specializes in providing consumer and consumer lifestyle studies and provides online access to panels in Japan, China, and Korea.

Web sites: www.researchpanelasia.com and http://en.data100.com.cn .