China’s Key Internet Stats Rival the US and Japan

www.emarketer.com

China’s Key Internet Stats Rival the US and Japan

MARCH 13, 2012

Broadband, computer and internet penetration in urban China rival the US and Japan

China, with a population of 1.3 billion people in 2011, accounted for almost half of mobile phone subscriptions and more than two-thirds of total internet users among the six Asia-Pacific countries studied by Euromonitor International in 2011.

Mobile Phone Subscriptions and Internet Users in Select Countries in Asia-Pacific, 2011 (millions)

While China’s massive population accounts for its high number of individual users, consistent investment in infrastructure has been a major factor in high broadband penetration in the country’s urban areas. According to Forrester Research’s “Asia Pacific Technographics Benchmark,” in Q2 2011 urban China reached a 68% broadband penetration rate.

For comparison, eMarketer estimated household broadband penetration in the US and Japan in 2011 at 67.8% and 70.7%, respectively.

High rates of urban connectivity aside, eMarketer put China’s overall broadband penetration at 34.6% in 2011, for a total of 146.4 million connected households—forecast to rise to 60% and 270.7 million households in 2016.