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Facebook, the world’s most popular social network, has billions of monthly active users globally of which less than three million are in China. The reason why Facebook reaches only around four percent of the Chinese population is because it is blocked in mainland China (excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) along with many other foreign social media giants like YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter.

Why is Facebook banned in China?

The Chinese government has been blocking access to Facebook since July 2009, when a series of anti-government riots appeared in the Xinjiang province. The activists reportedly used Facebook as their main communications channel. Chinese authorities have no control over foreign social networks and see them as a threat to social and political stability, hence a long list of foreign internet sites, Facebook among them, are no longer easily accessible in China. Some people, however, access blocked websites by connecting to a virtual private network (VPN).

What is the future of Facebook in China?

Facebook’s most recent attempt to make a comeback in July 2018 was immediately prevented by the Chinese authorities. It is unlikely that China will allow it for as long as Facebook refuses to store its data servers within the country’s borders. Besides, keeping foreign social media banned is economically beneficial for such Chinese social networks as WeChat, Sina Weibo and Youku Tudou. WeChat, the most popular Chinese social media platform and messaging app, seems to successfully fill the “Facebook void” for at least a billion monthly active users.