Chapter I
The Internet Era

The Internet is the greatest invention in the 20th century. The technological revolution ushered in by the Internet has the greatest impact on China’s economy and society among all technological revolutions. When the railway technology began to gain traction in the 19th century, the Qing government failed to jump on the bandwagon. Today, China is embracing the Internet with unprecedented enthusiasm. In 1994, China realized full TCP/IP connection with the international computer network; in 2008, it became the country with the most Internet users and the most broadband Internet users and “. CN” became the largest country code top-level domain (ccTLD); in 2015, the country entered a new era and“Internet Plus” became a major engine for the Chinese economy. The Internet is reshaping the economy and society of China and daily lives of Chinese people and injecting enormous vitality into the Chinese economy.

It is the first step that costs the effort. From constructing infrastructure to building platforms and ecosystems, developing Internet applications, and integrating the Internet with communication, logistics and payment, China’s Internet industry has achieved many major breakthroughs. The country has created a favorable environment for the growth of internationally competitive Internet companies.