WeChat has become Macau’s most-used new media

A joint survey by the Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST), the Sun Yat-Sen University, the Communication Association of Macau, and the Macau Creative Intelligence Development and Research Association has revealed that WeChat has become Macau residents’ most-used new media application.

The survey was carried out in October and November, with the results reported yesterday at MUST. Some 1,046 valid questionnaires were collected.

Some 72.1 percent of residents surveyed use WeChat the most, compared to other websites and social networks like Facebook and Weibo.

About 59.5 percent prefer using websites, whereas 52.8 percent said that they use Facebook the most.

Facebook beats both WeChat and websites among internet users aged between 26 and 30 years old; 42.3 percent of these residents list Facebook at the top of their preferences, followed by the 34.9 percent who prefer WeChat.

Ninety percent of the new media users are under the age of 50.

Some 47.7 percent of the interviewees spend an average of one hour daily checking WeChat. Around 19.2 percent of interviewees use WeChat more than three hours a day, 12.4 percent browse WeChat for two to three hours, and 16.1 percent use it for one to two hours.

Regardless of income level and industry, approximately 70 percent of people use WeChat the most out of any other application.

More than 70 percent of the surveyed WeChat users work in industries ranging from gaming and tourism to catering, construction and the civil service.

More than 66 percent of the interviewees have at some point commented on online news, while 65.4 percent reposted news, only 38.2 percent claimed to have reported original breaking news.

Some 57.5 percent, 60.6 percent and 39.1 percent of people with high, medium and low income, respectively, commented on news.

According to the survey, the local government’s main website is the most visited website among all other department websites (39.7 percent), with the second and third most visited being the Legislative Assembly (27.6 percent) and the Government Information Bureau (19 percent).

Macao Daily News, TDM and IMASTV are the top three most visited online media sources.

On WeChat, the most popular official account belongs to the Cultural Affairs Bureau, followed by the Macao Foundation and the Macau Government Tourism Office.

Regarding non-local media – websites in particular – Apple Daily topped local residents’ preferences, with the second and third places going to People’s Daily and TVB respectively. Oriental Daily News, Tencent and Toutiao are the most used non-local applications.

Compared to the results of the same survey last year, WeChat usage has decreased, while the number of people commenting on news has increased.

Hong Kong and mainland China dominated Macau residents’ choices for non-local media. Compared to 2016, the impact of mainland Chinese media is increasingly shaping Macau residents’ new media habits.