Consultants Forecast Big Boom in Internet Use
BEIJING, Mar. 01, 1999 -- (Agence France Presse) The number of Internet users in China is likely to reach 5.5 million by the middle of this year, according to a forecast released Sunday.
"China had 3.4 million people on the Internet at the end of last year, already giving it the world's seventh biggest Internet user base," said a statement by Hong Kong-based consultancy Big Brains.
"China's Internet user base will hit 5.5 million in mid-1999, 10 million in mid-2000 and be at least 15 million by mid-2001," the statement said.
The latest official count from the China Internet Network Information Center put the number of users at just 2.1 million at the end of last year, it added.
The statement said government plans to slash the cost of getting on-line from March 1 would contribute to the boom in China's Internet use.
The Big Brains figure of 3.4 million users puts China in seventh place worldwide for number of Internet users, as opposed to Internet accounts, which are mostly shared in China.
The United States ranks first with 73.8 million users, followed by Japan with 14 million, Britain with 7.5 million, Germany with 7.3 million, Canada with 6.9 million and Australia with 4.2 million.
China's Information Industry Ministry announced plans Sunday to cut the cost of Internet connection by around 50 percent from March 1. ( (c) 1999 Agence France Presse) |
