Facebook wants to conquer the Chinese market

"The biggest problem is the government's regulations. If Internet companies want to gain a foothold in China, they have to accept certain censures, which in turn contradict the image of the companies," explains Barbara Trionfi, Asia consultant at the International Press Institute , to Pressetext.

National networks easier to control

Half of the 500 million Internet users in China have already found their network. The market leaders are Renren and Sina, which operates Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter. "Facebook is actually a bit too late. It is quite difficult for the network to compete with an offering that is different from what is already there," explains Elinor Leung, analyst at CLSA.

"Facebook enjoys great popularity in Southeast Asia precisely because of its international reach," says Trionfi. This is a major advantage over national networks. These, in turn, are easier to control by the public authorities. It can therefore be assumed that China will not give in so easily when it comes to censorship regulations.

Fear of a Chinese spring looms large

In 2009, the government in Beijing blocked Facebook for the first time, as the People's Republic feared that the network would enable the organization of demonstrations following unrest in the province of Xinjiang. Twitter and YouTube are also blocked by the communist leadership. The censorship measures were also a reason for Google to abandon the market. "It's a vicious circle. On the one hand, the government wants to control information and on the other, the population. The aim is to influence public opinion," says Trionfi. There is great fear of a Chinese equivalent of the Arab Spring. According to experts, it was platforms like Facebook that got the ball rolling. (Press release)