China may not have Facebook, but it looks like the country is getting timeline. Renren, a Chinese social media site, has pretty much copied the design of Facebook’s timeline, right down to the introduction page.
We're kicking off our upcoming Social Media Marketing Boot Camp with a special keynote presentation by Ella Chick (left), the digital producer at Anderson Cooper 360°. She'll discuss how the network uses social media for breaking news and leverages social media to draw attention to organizations and causes. Learn more about our program and register here. 
China is worth keeping an eye on as Facebook turns its focus to mobile. It is being called the most active social country on the globe, with 95 percent of residents in China’s major cities using social networks, according to a new survey of 5,700 Internet users in China. While the country continues to block Facebook, as well as other outsider social networks including Twitter, it is gathering millions of users on its home-grown social networks and adapting to the new mobile platform at a brisk pace.
Persistence pays, goes the motto, and, in some cases, more handsomely than others. Facebook’s ambition to pursue a business relationship with China has not dwindled, and if anything, the company’s May 18 initial public offering makes the proposition even more enticing, with the potential to double the worth of the social network for investors.
Here’s Experian Hitwise’s assessment of much of a behemoth Facebook is in the U.S. and other markets.
The Twitterverse has erupted in retweets of CNBC’s claim that Facebook is reportedly discussing an initial public offering with unnamed bankers.
Facebook’s finances continue to exceed all expectations, and that has some people continuing to speculate whether the social network would change its plans about whether or not to have an initial public offer.
By virtue of preceding a host of other social media IPOs, the U.S. stock market debut of China’s leading social network RenRen on May 4, will likely set the tone for how subsequent deals will fare. So we’re curious to know how you think this stock will perform.
Goldman Sachs is limiting thes private sale of $1.5 billion in Facebook shares to offshore investors in order to avoid clashing with U.S. laws intended to keep private placements from getting over-hyped.
