Top of the world: 5 facts about China, the web and its global-leading 668 million online users
As China hosts World Internet Conference, attended by senior global technology company executives on Wednesday, we take a quick look at internet’s growing importance on mainland
1. China has the largest number of internet users in the world
China boasts more than 668 million internet users, 594 million of whom go online via their mobile phones, according to the China Internet Network Information Centre.
2. Chinese netizens spend more than two-and-a-half hours each day playing with their phones
Chinese mobile users spent an average of 158 minutes every day using their smartphones for entertainment in 2014, says the centre. It means that if you add up the combined daily total of each mainland person using their phones for entertainment it would equal 178,561 years.
3. China has banned more than 5,000 websites
China has one of the strongest and most sophisticated censorship systems in the world. More than 5,000 websites are blocked on the mainland, non-profit organisation GreatFire.org says. Among the websites that are blocked are popular social media networking platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
4. China’s mobile payments market continues to grow
