Microblogging Leads China Growth to 485 Mil. Netizens

Microblogging and group-buying led the growth of China’s internet users to 485 million as of the end of June, reported the China Internet Network Information Center.

The number of web users engaging in weibo, microblogging, jumped from 63.1 million users at the end of 2010 to 195 million at the end of June. Weibo sites let users post links and short messages and accrue followers. China’s leading weibo sites are operated by Sina Corp, Tencent Holdings and Baidu because Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are blocked in China.

The booming popularity of weibo has taken a toll on other social-networking sites where users fell from 235.1 million at the end of 2010 to 230 million at the end of June.

The number of users participating in online group-buying jumped from 18.7 million to 42.2 million users during that same 6-month period.

China’s internet population of 485 million is about twice that of the United States. However, as a percentage of its 1.35 billion population, the penetration rate is only about 36 percent. By comparison, the U.S. has an internet penetration rate of around 77.3 percent while South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, respectively, have rates of 81.1, 78.2 and 68.8 percent.