<p>The only major American social network with a significant presence in China is LinkedIn. And that presence is about to get much bigger, the company hopes, after it today switches on a beta version of a mainland China-focused, Chinese-language site, branded (pronounced "ling ying.")</p><p>Unlike Google, Facebook, and Twitterall generally blocked by the country's governmentLinkedIn has a growing presence in China. It has already quietly amassed four million users in the country. The new Chinese-language site aims to broaden its reach in a market with some 140 million professionals. The company has also established a joint venture with venture capital funds Sequoia China and CBC (China Broadband Capital) to further that aim.</p><p>"Our mission is to connect the world's professionals and create greater economic opportunityand this is a significant step towards achieving that goal," Derek Shen, LinkedIn's president of China, wrote in a blog post.</p><p>While native services like Sina Weibo, WeChat, and Baidu have massive user bases, there appears to be a gap in professional social networking in China that LinkedIn can address. That could help the social network jumpstart sluggish growth in its users, amid concerns its penetration in developed markets like the US has peaked.</p><p><a href="http://qz.com/180755/linkedin-is-doing-what-facebook-google-and-twitter-cant-expanding-in-china/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://techland.time.com/2014/02/25/in-the-absence-of-facebook-and-twitter-linkedin-expands-into-china/">In the Absence of Facebook and Twitter, LinkedIn Expands Into China</a> (TIME)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=djaWbSeWYP0XMsMcd3N_YrlqZCf1M&authuser=0&ned=us">130 additional articles.</a></p>