China’s location-based services (LBS) market boasted three to four million active users by the end of the third quarter this year. China is already home of more than 30 LBS companies, many of which are growing at a decent clip.
As has happened in the US, Chinese businesses are trying to take advantage of location-based networks to promote their products. On its debut in May, Jiepang signed a deal with a café chain in Beijing to offer users free coffee the first time they check in at one of the stores. The site has also joined up with more than a thousand group shopping websites to help users enjoy bulk purchase discounts on a variety of goods.Currently, around 18 percent of China’s estimated 800 million mobile users are using smart phones, a number expected to grow at an annual average rate of 35 percent in the coming five years.
A location-based service (LBS) is an information and entertainment service, accessible with mobile devices through the mobile network and utilizing the ability to make use of the geographical position of the mobile device .
LBS services can be used in a variety of contexts, such as health, work, personal life, etc. LBS services include services to identify a location of a person or object, such as discovering the nearest banking cash machine or the whereabouts of a friend or employee. LBS services include parcel tracking and vehicle tracking services. LBS can include mobile commerce when taking the form of coupons or advertising directed at customers based on their current location. They include personalized weather services and even location-based games. They are an example of telecommunication convergence.
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