Using Social Media To Increase HIV Testing Among Men Who Have Sex with Men - Beijing, China, 2013-2017.

The prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in China is low overall (0.06%) (1); however, it is substantially higher (8.0%) among men who have sex with men (MSM) (2), and the stigmatization of same-sex behaviors in China presents challenges for HIV prevention and treatment efforts. In 2015, Blued, a Beijing-based media company that operates an online dating application popular among Chinese MSM, launched an ongoing HIV testing campaign that combined its push-notification† platform and geolocation capabilities to encourage HIV testing among MSM in Beijing. To assess trends in use of HIV testing services, Blued and CDC's China HIV program examined testing at six Blued-operated Beijing HIV testing centers from 2 years before the campaign launch in 2015 through December 31, 2017. A sharp increase in HIV testing followed the launch of Blued's online campaign, indicating that leveraging social media platforms and their geolocation-based text messaging functionality might be useful in increasing HIV testing among MSM, particularly those aged ≤35 years.