Growth in Chinese microblogs to slow

The fast growth of China’s Twitter-like microblogs is likely to slow as the market becomes saturated and the government steps up regulation, The Wall Street Journal reported, quoting the results of a survey conducted by the China Internet Network Information Center, a government research agency. At the end of 2011, about 250 million people in China were using microblogs, nearly quadruple the level a year earlier, said CNNIC. That meant nearly half of China’s total 513 million internet users were using microblogs, including those offered by internet portal operators Sina (SINA.NASDAQ) and Tencent (0700.HKG). But the report cautioned “…after reaching high levels, microblog usage rates have ended their explosive growth.” Government policies, namely the microblog real-name registration policy that was introduced in late 2011, will play a role in the slowdown, CNNIC said.