2 trillion yuan boost for China broadband

China plans to invest two trillion yuan (HK$2.53 trillion) to improve its broadband infrastructure by 2020 with the aim of taking nearly the entire population online, a vice-minister at the Ministry of Information and Industry said yesterday.

The government is trying to improve fixed-line and wireless connectivity throughout the country, home to the largest number of mobile-phone users in the world but where only 45 per cent of the population has internet access.

Shang said the government aimed to boost the average broadband speed in mainland cities to 20 megabits per second by 2015 - which is less than what internet users in Hong Kong and Singapore now enjoy.

In rural areas, where internet penetration is very low, broadband speeds would hit 4 Mbps by that year, he said.

Beijing's broadband strategy would ensure that the number of 3G and LTE users would increase to 1.2 billion by 2020, four times the present figure, Shang said.