When Facebook says that they won’t stop until every single organism on the planet has a profile, that includes a serious effort to make friends in China. But the world’s most populous nation is building a social victor of their own.  The mounting interest of foreign institutions to invest in China is positioning them as a strong contender against US social networking organizations in particular.  China’s an attractive market for many aspects of the social media space, and Lenovo recently revealed their social media and cloud computing strategies for the country.

It’s social networking that’s slowly tearing the great wall enclosing China’s global network, but the big question is how the Chinese social media/networking sector can keep up with a massive market that’s one of the largest, but also one of the most difficult to penetrate.

Alibaba is China’s Bet to Social Success

As part of the conglomerate gunning to bid for Yahoo stakes, Alibaba has entered the social networking arena and they plan to create a strong presence here.  The e-commerce company is reportedly brewing something big to surprise the competition.  Laiwang is the result of Alibaba’s own social networking efforts, verifying the need for every web/mobile portal to go social.

RenRen: China’s Facebook

The supposed “Facebook of China” experienced a heartbreaking net loss for the third quarter.  The organization blamed an increase in expenses from the expansion of its group-based deal site, Nuomi. Not to mention, RenRen’s facing some serious competition on the international field.

The net loss was recorded at $1.2 million compared to revenue growth of $7.3 million within the same period last year. RenRen’s operating expenses doubled over the year. To alleviate further troubles, the Chinese social network will re-allocate their money to investments and acquisitions that better complement their business.

Tianji: China’s LinkedIn

Since adopting the LinkedIn model, Tianji rose to the top as China’s largest social network for professionals. They currently have 8 million registered users in their roster. But, they are expecting to multiply rapidly and reach 16 million by 2012 with the assistance of their parent company, Viadeo.

“With almost 500 million people and Internet usage penetration at about 35 % , China represents both a huge opportunity and a challenge for companies targeting this market.   Major companies like Google, Twitter and Facebook have unsuccessfully tried to gain market share in China–learning the hard way that the Internet is simply different in China, ” said Derek Ling, CEO and founder, Tianji.

“Although Tianji is the #1 professional social network in China with over 8 million members, the market for professional social networks in China is still in its infancy.  The true winners–the ones who will take the lion-share of the market–will understand China’s Internet cultural differences and customize its services for this unique market.”

Weibo: China’s Twitter

China’s Twitter, Weibo, is gaining traction by luring brands like Louis Vuitton and Unilever to promote their products and services within this microblogging site to penetrate the enormous Chinese market.  Weibo was recently involved in issues concerning some posts that fired at the Communist Party ruling in the country. However, this social networking hotspot is only amassing popularity in tier cities with a certain socioeconomic status, indicating a relatively narrow consumer appeal at this point.

TuDing: China’s Instagram

If Twitter and Facebook have their respective Chinese version, Instagram found its counterpart with TuDing. The photo sharing hub already boasts more than 4 million registered users, is deemed one of the most sought-after social centers in the country.

Still within the social avenue, location-based social mobile app Jiepang teams with Starbucks to tap outdoor media in anticipation of the surge in check-ins during the holiday season.

China has blocked worldwide social network sensations like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. It’s a national verdict that dates back to 2009, and the paranoia seems to grow with every internet boom.  It’s going to take a great deal of creativity to navigate one of the the final frontiers on the international front, and these are just a handful of the companies making waves in China.

Contributors: Cherr Aira