Information Society Watch

April 24, 2008, Joe McDonald, The Associated Press

The Chinese government, according to the Xinhua News Agency, has reported that the online number of Internet users in China has grown to 221 million, tying the US for largest online population. However, the numbers can be deceiving because they depend on how the measure is taken. Though the number of Chinese Internet users is high, at 16 percent of people online, penetration still lower than the world average of 19 percent. China also lags behind other markets in online commerce and other financial measures, and issues such as online censorship remains extensive. However, the Internet continues to develop in China, both in terms of numbers of users and services available to them.

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