China's fast-growing population of Internet users has risen to 298 million after passing the United States last year to become the world's largest, a government-sanctioned research group said Tuesday.
The latest figure represents a 42 percent increase compared with a year earlier, the China Internet Network Information Center said in a report.
China's Internet use is growing at explosive rates despite government efforts to block access to material deemed subversive or pornographic. Regulators are in the midst of a crackdown on sites accused of carrying sexually explicit material.
The financial size of China's online market still trails those of the United States, South Korea and other countries.
China's online penetration rate also is relatively low--23 percent, compared with 74 percent of the U.S. adults, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project. The United States has about 223 million Internet users, according to Nielsen Online.
China is preparing to launch third-generation mobile phone service, which supports wireless Web surfing. That is expected to set off a new surge in Internet use and development of new services.
By contrast, the U.S. online population has largely stabilized.
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