Comparison of social portals

In China, the Internet is developing rapidly and social networks there see their member numbers increase rapidly. Earlier we mentioned that the most frequently used Chinese networking sites are often inaccessible or little known outside of China. QQ, which is China’s most popular networking site, has a 50% market share with 380 million users. This site that started out as an instant messaging service has developed itself into a portal and now has its own form of virtual currency. Its popularity is so widespread that it is possible to perform transactions in online shops and gaming sites that function outside of the QQ network.

The popularity of Google in North America is undeniable. Nevertheless, the largest search engine in China is Baidu. Many local varieties of Facebook (51, Kaixin, Renren) and Twitter (Digu, Taotao, Zuosa, Weibo) have tens or even hundreds of millions of users. Even sites such as Youtube and Ebay have very similar Chinese equivalents (Tudou and Taobao respectively). And all this is only within China. The strength and diversity of the Chinese.

Internet is partly driven by its population. It was a lack of understanding of the cultural differences by Western computer giants however, that led to the development of these local alternatives.