Twitter Looks to China for Growth Despite Ban
The micro-blogging site has been banned in China since 2009.
— -- Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey wants to reach behind China's "Great Firewall" to drum up business, despite the fact the site has been blocked in mainland China since 2009.
In a tweet this morning, Dorsey announced Kathy Chen has stepped into the role of managing director for China. Chen will be tasked with helping create more value for Chinese companies who buy advertisements on Twitter despite the service being blocked in their home country.
The move also includes a new Twitter account dedicated to updates on the "Greater China" market. In a video tweeted from the account, Chen said she is "really excited to find more ways to create value for our advertisers."
China has imposed filters on many popular foreign websites including Twitter, Facebook and Google, earning the censors the nickname "The Great Firewall of China."
Twitter opened an office in Hong Kong last March, better positioning it to do business with Chinese companies looking to advertise to the service's more than 300 million users. According to her new Twitter profile, Chen is based in Hong Kong.