111 mln Internet users in China in 2005

The number of Web users in China grew by 18% in 2005 to 111 mln, the Economic Daily said. 8.5% of the country's 1.3 bln people now had access to the Internet. The 2005 gains represented an acceleration from 2004, when the number of Internet users grew 16% to 94 mln. More than half of China's Web population (about 64 mln people) accessed the Web via broadband connections, suggesting a 50% increase versus 2004 as China strongly promotes the development of its broadband networks.