800 million Internet users, 1,4 billion mobile phones by 2015 in China

The Ministry of Information and Information Technology estimates that by 2015, the number of Internet users will increase to 800 million, and the number of mobile phones in China to 1,4 billion.

The Chinese leadership plans to increase the number of Internet users from 513 million at the end of last year to 800 million by the middle of the decade. According to the development plan of the Ministry of Information and Information Technology, by 2015, 57 percent of the population would have Internet access, a quarter of them in rural areas. A central program to expand broadband internet capacity is planned later this year, which could increase the speed of the connection five to ten times the current one.

In parallel with Internet users, the ministry also forecasts a large-scale increase in the number of mobile phones, which they estimate will reach 2015 billion by 1,4. This represents 100 percent saturation, an increase of 15 percent compared to end-2010 data. With the proliferation of smartphones, the number of 3G Internet users will increase to 450 million by the middle of the decade, the agency estimates.

The ministry forecasts that the telecommunications sector will grow by 25 percent a year over the next three years, creating 2,3 million new jobs by the end of the current five-year plan period (2011-2015).

Source: MTI