WeChat, which is owned by Tencent Holdings Ltd., said that the business messaging service is specifically being designed for work-related communication. (Photo : Reuters)
A new trend is spreading among Chinese netizens in the form of cute little stickers that feature facial expressions that are used for online chatting, as reported by China Daily.
The fad of online stickers, usually an illustrated image sometimes accompanied by a witty word or phrase, has spread throughout China in all sorts of Internet conversations, whether it is a friendly chat or a debate about politics.
"I use stickers a lot," said 23-year-old Beijing college student Liu Yiran. "They make us feel closer."
Liu said that she even collects these stickers on the chatting app WeChat.
Similar to Liu, 24-year-old Beijing netizen Miao Kaixian enjoys using funny stickers mainly because it helps him break the ice when he meets new friends.
"Once started in a conversation, such stickers could come endlessly," said Miao.
The facial expression stickers were originally inspired by Rage Comic. Eventually, these gained their own features that combine cuteness with parody.
Netizens have created numerous facial expression stickers by adding witty words to pictures of exaggerated human faces and comics. These are done to express a particular feeling and with the use of photo-editing software like Photoshop.
A well-known example is Yao Ming, an internationally recognizable basketball star, whose facial expressions have been the source of many netizens who make stickers.
WeChat, the country's most widely used messaging platform, has also been instrumental in spreading these facial expression stickers, as netizens have noted that it is easier to use stickers on this platform compared with other similar apps.
"I think using stickers sets a leisurely playful tone to my WeChat conversations," said Beijing-based international student Kevin. "They undoubtedly add personality and humor to conversation."
Though generally well-received, stickers have at times confused and annoyed netizens.
"Sometimes when you open the group chats, boom! A full screen of weird stickers pop up," said Miao.
There have also been fears that the stickers would impair the ability of netizens to use written language to express themselves. However, Han, a linguistics professor from Capital Normal University, does not share these concerns.
"In general, I don't think they will significantly affect how Chinese language is being used," she said, because stickers are only applied in instant messaging."
Han added, "We may, however, observe changes in how those susceptible to sub-culture recognize and process visual information in the long run. Say, changes in their short-term memory capacities due to disruptive, graphic insertions into written texts."
