China
14:05, 15-Aug-2017
Facebook launches new photo app exclusively in China
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Facebook discreetly launched a photo-editing app called Colorful Balloons, in China in May.
The App was not previously announced until last Friday when it was spotted by the New York Times. The newspaper reported that Colorful Balloons shares the look, function and feel of Facebook's Moments app. It works with WeChat, a leading messaging app from Chinese social media giant Tencent, according to the BBC.
The latest statistics from the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) show that China now has the world's largest online market with 731 million users.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. /Photo via Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. /Photo via Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook
A Facebook representative told the BBC "We have long said that we are interested in China, and are spending time understanding and learning more about the country in different ways."
Facebook was blocked in China in 2009, while its photo-sharing app Instagram was banned in 2014 and the encrypted messaging app WhatsApp was partially restricted last month.
Facebook has been trying to make its way back into the Chinese market. The company's CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reported to have been trying to persuade Chinese officials for years and even spent one year learning to speak Mandarin.