Radiohead test China's tightly-controlled internet

Radiohead have set up an account on Chinese microblogging website Weibo.

Part of the Chinese internet portal Sina.com, Weibo is touted as China's equivalent of Twitter. The band created an account on the site last week and have now been verified as genuine by the social networking company.

Radiohead have been active critics of China over recent years, having performed at various Free Tibet concerts and urging fans to campaign for Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo's release back in December.

So far, the group have only posted "testing the weibo" through the account, with the Chinese government quick to shut down any internet activity that promotes anything against their ideals.

The band have managed to gain over 49,000 followers since their Weibo debut. Their first post attracted 3,800 comments.

Other Western celebrities to set up Weibo accounts include Hollywood actor Tom Cruise and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

Radiohead's Ed O'Brien recently hailed the use of social networking to instigate protests around the world.

Watch Radiohead play their newly-released track 'Staircase' below: