China net users outnumber US

21 April 2008

The number of internet users in China has outstripped the US for the first time, according to research from Beijing.

USA Today reports figures from analysts BDA China, which show that the country had over 220 million internet users in February, roughly 17% of its 1.3 billion population.

The number of internet users in the USA was 216 million at the end of 2007, according to Nielsen/Net Ratings. The figure equates to 71% of the US population.

The pace of growth in the Chinese market was emphasised by BDA chairman Duncan Clark, who said that the number of internet users had risen to 233 million by the end of March.

He added that while the Chinese government "continues to filter the net and encourage self-censorship, it also has a mandate to promote cheaper technology and the knowledge economy".

Baidu remains by far the most popular search engine in China, thought to be used by more than two-thirds of web users. Google mops up most of the rest of the market, with a share of just under one quarter.

Category: Google, Search engines