Facebook’s secret Chinese app fails to win support

Facebook, which launched a photo sharing app in China recently called Colorful Balloons, has proved to be dud in the country.

Facebook Inc, whose social media platform is blocked in China, authorised a local company to launch a photo-sharing application in the country in May, according to a New York Times report, which cited a person with knowledge of the company's plans.

The app, called Colorful Balloons, is much like Facebook's Moments application in function and feel, but does not go by the Facebook name, the Times said on 11 August.

A company called Youge Internet Technology released the app in China, without any hint of association with the social media giant, the report said, citing a post in Apple's app store.

"We have long said that we are interested in China, and are spending time understanding and learning more about the country in different ways," a Facebook spokesperson said by email.

"Our focus right now is on helping Chinese businesses and developers expand to new markets outside China by using our ad platform."

According to the New York Times, it is not clear if China's various internet regulators were aware of the app's existence.

Western social media websites like Facebook and Twitter are blocked by China's censors, which has helped increase the popularity of home-grown messaging app WeChat, owned by Tencent and microblogging service Weibo.

English-language media spread the news rapidly, as it marked the first sign that the company is indeed attempting to make a product specifically for Chinese consumers after years of being shut out of the country.

The response to the news in China has been more muted.  The lukewarm reception from both consumers and the Chinese media suggests that Mark Zuckerberg will face an uphill battle if he hopes to make inroads in the country, according to commentators.

According to data from App Annie since May, ''Colorful Balloons'' has been in near limbo in China. Before the publication of the report, the highest-ever ranking was when it was the 313th most-downloaded app in the Photo and Video category.