China’s lonely single men are fuelling its ‘hormone industries’, finding an outlet for their desires in anime, social networks, and games that hint at sex. YY is China’s top video cam karaoke site – but is it for playful teens, or the next stage in China’s faux-coy hook-up culture?

China’s Golden Shield Project – or the ‘Great Firewall’ – has long posed problems for video moguls looking to please domestic audiences. But with new regulations tightening censorship even further, how are media sites staying relevant in an increasingly crowded and insular market?

Momo is China's most popular app to enable location-specific flirting. It has over 52 million users, having picked up 12 million between March and July 2014 alone. In a society that can feel socially repressive, apps like Momo create a new platform for interaction.

In China, calling someone a diaosi – which directly translates as ’penis hair’ – isn’t an insult. On the contrary, millions of Chinese in dead-end jobs, with no car, house or girlfriend identify with the term, wearing it as a badge of honour. But could self-deprecation be a danger to society?