In 2002, a fire at an illegal Beijing Internet cafe killed 25 people, and thousand others have been closed in crackdowns. Fears over minors accessing pornography and violent sites have also led to the Chinese government refusing small operator applications and pushing for the industry to raise standards with reliable Internet cafe chain services, reported Xinhua, a Chinese news agency.
"The chain cafes will play a useful role in helping youth learn and relax," an Asia United Telecom and Network Co. Ltd (AUTNC), official told Xinhua. The company said it would gradually expand from its first Beijing cafe to other provinces in China.
AUTNC has just signed a memorandum of understanding with IBM to explore China's Internet cafe potential, the Chinadaily news Web site reported.
The Chinese company AUTNC will build a 2,000 sq.m. Internet cafe in Bejing with 700 computers and several servers using all IBM hardware and software, including IBM's Tivoli management software.
IBM will back the project financially, with the investment paid back in later revenues from AUTNC. IBM added that they expected more orders from AUTNC following the success of their initial joint venture.
David Cheng, IBM's director of global small and medium business in China told Chinadaily that IBM was confident of meeting the raised requirements for stability following China's June push to larger chain Internet cafes.
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