Chinese youth at an internet cafe (via BCG report)
Not surprisingly the most populated country in the world also has the most Internet users. The Chinese Internet community has now grown to over half a billion due to a sky rocketing popularity of a micro blog called 'weibos.'
The role of weibos in sharing information has allowed the community to spread the news and communicate about corruption, injustice and even organizing protests challenging the government’s extreme authoritative structure.
In 2010, about 457 million people were online in China, at the end of 2011, 56 millions new users were added to this community. The sharp increase happened in cities and is slowing down. But in rural or poorer areas there was not much growth at all. A similar increase of 53 million was also seen in the mobile phone Internet users.
The Chinese Internet Network Information Center released some eye opening statistics about China’s Internet use. Only 24.3% of the population in Chinas poorest province, Guizhou, uses the Internet. While in Bejing, 70% are on the web. Even though 30% of Chinese school children go online, only 0.7% of the communist parties cadres use it.
The growth of weibos has been particularly astounding. From the 63 millions weibos users reported in 2010, now the CINIC Chinese Internet Network Information Center tallies 250 million users.
Weibos users first spread news of a successful rebellion of people in the southern Chinese province of Wukan against communist officials and the news of a deadly high-speed train crash, which opened conversations about the expensive project.
The Chinese government takes down anything that they seem as harmful to the government, but a quarter billion users are nearly impossible to control so large cities are trying to oblige weibos users to use their real names. Very much like what many think SOPA will bring to the U.S.
Whatever futile restrictions the Chinese governments put on internet users, the Chinese internet community is surely demonstrating what open communication and information exchange can accomplish. The people set the trends and the rest of the world will undoubtedly follow.
Eavesdropper
