Having worked in China, the trust issue is still a problem, and I even thought about them as I read the article. For example, most purchases are made in cash. Want to buy a BMW? Bring 1 million RMB to the dealership. Want to order something online? In the extreme cases, sites such as DangDang contract a delivery guy to go to your house, plug the item in the wall, and show you that it works, and then you pay that guy. Sure, it may be because some things do not work out of the box. In fact, I recently purchased a DVD player from Five Star (Now a part of Best Buy USA), and they would not let me leave the store without first plugging it in and showing me that it works.