Sina Microblog Launches Voice Posting Service
TechWeb, 2/14/11
Chinese internet company Sina (Nasdaq: SINA) has launched a voice-based version of Sina Microblog (Weibo), allowing users to call a preset phone number to record and post voice messages.
Celebrities including singer Faye Wong and Kai-fu Lee, CEO of Chinese venture capital firm Innovation Works, were among the first to try the new service. Wong's message reached 2 mln followers, while Lee's message was forwarded over 2,000 times and garnered more than 2,000 comments.
After binding their phone number to their Sina account, users can call a dedicated number (9501399 for China Unicom users, 1259085500 for China Mobile users) to register, record and send a voice message up to 1 minute in length, as well as listen to their previous recordings. A link to the recording is posted on the user's microblog account.
The service is currently ad-free and involves no fees other than user's standard calling rates.
Sina and China Telecom are currently preparing to launch the service for China Telecom users as well.
Keywords: wireless Faye Wong Kai-fu Lee China Telecom China Mobile China Unicom Internet CHL Sina 0728.HK 0762.HK 0941.HK 600050.SH CHA CHU microblogging