Chinadotcom Corp.
announced this week that it has taken a minority stake in HK-based Internet content
provider WOW Networks to develop a portal targeting ethnic Chinese women
between the age of 20 and 35.
The Web site — Chinese Women On the Web (cwow.com) — gained investment from
Chinadotcom’s (CHINA) Jump Start Incubator program, which aims at nurturing startups with
new and innovative ideas.
The site will be launched in May in English, traditional and simplified Chinese. Content
will focus on topics like weddings, pregnancy and parenting.
The site will also provide applications, such as planning and budgeting tools,
community applications, and a suite of interactive guides for personalized information
exchange.
According to the research company Media Metrix, women represent 48 percent of
the US Netizens. AC Nielsen found that women comprise 41 percent of the Net
userbase in Hong Kong and 46 percent in Taiwan.
“Work carried out by Jupiter Research suggests women will, in time, outnumber their
male counterparts on the Internet,” said Peter Hamilton, chief operating officer of
chinadotcom and also director of WOW Networks. “The women’s segment targeted
by cwow.com forms an increasingly powerful online consumer market as it is made up
of women who are financially independent and who have strong purchasing power.”
According to Angeline Chow and Patricia Tung, founders and co-chief executive
officers of cwow.com, the Web site will earn revenue from online and offline
advertising, market research and e-commerce-enabling services.
WOW Networks said that it has a branch office in Taiwan and will open its China
office soon.