Hmm, funny how suddenly I see stories about social networking in China as the next big thing.
Firstly, in comments to the recent Econmist article, with news that one of the most profitable sites is QQ:
The best in class is QQ in China: 300 million active accounts, 523 million USD revenues,
224 million USD operating profit. More, advertising represents less than 20% of revenues, most of the rest is digital goods for Internet or mobile. How is it possible to claim this is not a business?
We gave a presentation at a conference recently comparing Facebook and QQ. Seewww.plus8star.com for more info.
Secondly, news that Google has bought into the market. ‘Google Invests $1M In Chinese Social Networking Firm’:
Google Inc., last week disclosed that it has invested $1 million in a start-up company Comsenz Inc., a Chinese company that provides software and services for online community networks. It is nevertheless a different move by Google to expand its foothold in China. Reports of Google’s investment funds in Comsenz showed up in Chinese media last year, although the speculation had it that Google was investing roughly $5 million into the Beijing-based company.
Thirdly, I wonder if Medicexchange, which already has invested in China through medical imaging online through its portal, will extend this to a social networking site aimed at the the lucrative China market?