This means that the figures are not as precise as they first appear. Further they point out the fact that at least at the current time, China to a large extent represents a series of markets, not one giant well integrated structure. The figures from the China Internet Information Center, however, of the typical internet user in China being young, generally unmarried, college educated and predominantly at least at the present time male, does seem to be substantiated from what little survey data exists on demographics at this point. Thus we are looking at an Internet population of about four million in a country of 1.25 billion people. On a percentage basis usage therefore remains much less than in the west and figures the reader may have heard of a vast Internet are largely hype.
Growth though is rapid.
IDC Asia-Pacific again estimates that total computer sales in China will exceed 4.5 million units in 1999 and over six million units in 2000. These units which are being marketed as aids to help Chinese students improve their studies could well increase even more rapidly given Chinese extended family pampering of the more limited offspring brought about by China s one child family planning policies. Even with these growth figures, however, future projections for growth of the Internet in China seem too optimistic. The Yankee Group, a U.S. information technology research firm, has stated in a recent report that China is expected to surpass the United States in its Internet users by 2005 to become the largest Internet market in the world. The Yankee Group report goes on to says that China will be the largest nation in terms of Internet users in the Asia-Pacific region by the year 2001 with about 40 million users.