Mobile instant messaging has become a key battleground for control of China’s internet services market. The country’s rapid growth in mobile internet usage and a smartphone user base exceeding 843 million has launched a new wave of smartphone mobile chat services that can be used to channel traffic to many other apps and websites.
SCMP staff reporters have examined the mobile messaging market in China, looking at both the dominant platforms and smaller firms jostling to carve out niche positions. Their inclusion in the below list is based on how innovative the apps are in terms of platform and services, as well as user base and popularity.
Though no match to WhatsApp or Facebook messenger, which have over 700 million and 600 million monthly active users (MAU) worldwide, WeChat - with 500 million MAUs as of the end of last year - is without any doubt the top mobile chatting app in mainland China. Begun as a project at Tencent’s research and project centre in Guangzhou - away from its Shenzhen headquarters - in 2010, it caught on very quickly, growing to 50 million users in its first year. Tencent has since expanded the app into a mobile platform, with payment, gaming and social media services.