Peking Zuck: Facebook May Open Beijing Office

In one of those strange occurrences that seems could only take place in Beijing, reports Tuesday that Facebook may be opening an office in China, probably Beijing, as reported by Bloomberg.

Any initial presence here would be a sales office, to access Chinese clients that wish to advertise on the social media site.

"Today, our sales team in Hong Kong is supporting these Chinese businesses, but because of the rapid growth these businesses are achieving by using Facebook, we are of course exploring ways that we can provide even more support locally and may consider having a sales office in China in the future," Facebook Vice President Vaughan Smith said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg.

It's worth stepping back and just enjoying the irony for a moment. Facebook is blocked in China. Bloomberg is blocked in China. And yet here's Bloomberg reporting on Facebook opening an office, in China.

Even blocked sites have not gone unnoticed by Chinese companies, and even more ironic, Chinese media outlets. Among others, People's Daily Online has a Facebook page with 710,699 likes. Both China Central Television and the Xinhua News Agency have active Twitter accounts. Feel free to comment in the section below.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg made a big splash when he visited Beijing in December 2010, along with his Chinese-American then-girlfriend-now-wife Priscilla Chan. He met with Baidu founder Robin Li during the visit.

Photo: Facebook