Beijing: China’s online population hit 772 million at the end of 2017, of which 40.74 million were added in 2017, an increase of 5.6 per cent from 2016, according to a report on China’s Internet development released on Wednesday.
China’s Internet availability rate reached 55.8 per cent, exceeding the global average by 4.1 percentage points, stated the report by the China Internet Network Information Centre (CNNIC), Xinhua news agency reported.
In rural areas, the online population reached 209 million last year, up by 7.93 million from the end of 2016.
A total of 753 million Chinese used mobile phones to surf the Internet last year, making up 97.5 per cent of the online population, said the report.
Smart devices could tap more potential to grow the online industry. Online public services as well as poverty reduction programmes have created a sense of fulfilment for many Chinese, said the CNNIC.(IANS)
