Youth and Instant Messenger

I am conducting researches on Chinese youth and their usage of Internet services. I have been thinking why QQ, the Chinese local instant messenger is such a big success.

Because of the one child policy, most of the teenagers are the only boy/girl in their family. They have no one to share their secrets, their dreams, their happiness and sadness. So they turn to IM for accompany. Even if they do not chat online, knowing that their friends are also online. They won’t feel lonely.

IM gives them a way to do identity experiment. Some youth admit that they are shy and have difficulties to express themselves well in real life. In the world of I.M, they can free themselves, pretending to be someone else. The hide online and lead another life. In this virtual reality, they are someone they want to be.

QQ, the Chinese I.M tool gives the youth a platform to express themselves. The youth can construct their own online identity by avatar, alias, images and emotional icons. Although other I.M tools such as ICQ, MSN, and Yahoo! Messenger also have those ways of identity construction, the functions are not so vivid.

QQ is more than just an I.M. It integrates online games, virtual reality, into I.M. Users come to QQ not just for chatting but also for entertaining.

This successful I.M tool is not free from troubles. It is not a pure region for the youth. There are too many strangers online sending annoying advertisings. When the teenagers become older, they would find it is a childish tool. The platform should segment its market according to the needs of users.

(I will write more on articles, this is only my initial thinking)