More than 600 million Chinese internet users fuelled a two trillion yuan information service and e-commerce market in 2014, according to the Internet Society of China. In March, the government put forward its 'Internet Plus' strategy to promote the blooming online services market, and many new apps have emerged focusing on online-to-offline (O2O) business.
SCMP staff reporters have tested some of the most popular Chinese O2O apps. Their inclusion is based on functionality, convenience, time saving qualities, business scale, and popularity with users.
Ele Me / You Hungry: Food delivery
Founded in 2013, the app now covers more than 180,000 restaurants in 200 Chinese cities with more than 10 million users and over one million daily food orders. As well as independent restaurants, the app also covers fast-food outlets including KFC and Subway. The company raised more than US$500 million in funding in 2015.