Unlike China's Douyin -- TikTok's sister app -- or the micro-blogging site Weibo, Xiaohongshu leans heavily towards apolitical content such as lifestyle, travel, beauty and food topics.

It is seen as relatively less censored than other platforms: users can be found posting LGBTQ content and discussing the merits of women remaining single, topics often considered sensitive in China.

"Responsible individuals" at the Instagram-like platform would be punished after Xiaohongshu, known as RedNote in English, failed to "fulfil its main responsibility of content management", the Cyberspace Administration of China said in a statement Thursday.

It gave no details of the punishments.

The regulator criticised Xiaohongshu for hosting "numerous posts hyping celebrities' personal dynamics and trivial matters and other negative content frequently populating the trending search list".

"A clear, clean and healthy cyberspace aligns with the interests of the people," it added.

Xiaohongshu confirmed it had been summoned and penalised "over the issue of mismanaging its trending search".

"We sincerely accept this, (and will) profoundly learn lessons," an official account said in a statement on the platform.

It added that it had launched a "special rectification working group" to better its trending search governance and "humbly accepted" oversight from its users.

Xiaohongshu was launched in Shanghai in 2013 and has hundreds of millions of monthly active users.

It translates literally to Little Red Book, but is not a reference to Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong's book of quotations.

Xiaohongshu's "Explore" page is similar to TikTok's "For You" page -- both curated by an algorithm that suggests content based on users' interests and interactions on the platforms.

It is also an online marketplace similar to TikTok Shop, where users can directly buy items including clothing, make-up and accessories.

- Influencer hub -

Xiaohongshu has also popularised "da ka", or "check-in" tourism, where travellers plan itineraries around scenic or trending spots specifically to take photos for social media.

And similar to Instagram and TikTok, the platform has also become a hub for influencers endorsing sponsored products.

Minutes after the regulator announced the probe on Thursday, some Xiaohongshu users took to the platform to applaud it for going after celebrity gossip.

Others scorned its targeting of Xiaohongshu, arguing that similar platform Weibo deserved greater regulation.

"I'm dead, to what limit has Xiaohongshu gone? According to this standard, Weibo should be taken down," one user wrote.

The regulator did not name other online forums in its statement but said it would "urge websites and platforms to fulfil their main responsibilities and social responsibilities" to keep a clear cyberspace.

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