As of March 2024, there were over 1.75 billion mobile cell phone subscriptions in China. According to official government statistics, the country had a penetration rate 99.8 percent for mobile internet. It becomes clear, therefore, why the Chinese economy and society reached such a high degree of digitalization.
Completely state-run
The backbone of the mobile network is an efficient communications network. In China, three state-owned telecommunication companies are responsible for the construction and maintenance of the national cellular network. Together with the government, China Unicom, China Mobile, and China Telecom also built the country’s 5G infrastructure. In 2020, the three enterprises invested a total of 27 billion U.S. dollars in next-generation mobile internet technology.
Digital multitool
In China, smartphones have become a central tool in everyday life. In recent years, mobile payments have slowly replaced cash and cards, with e-commerce revolutionizing shopping behavior for millions of Chinese consumers. Now, with the COVID-19 pandemic, the mobile phone has become a crucial tool for public health. Citizens are required to carry a health code on their phone which shows how much the risk exposure of a person is depending on proximity to coronavirus infections.
Number of mobile cell phone subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024
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Characteristic
Mobile phone subscriptions in millions
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National Bureau of Statistics of China. (May 29, 2024). Number of mobile cell phone subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024 (in millions) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved July 22, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/278204/china-mobile-users-by-month/
National Bureau of Statistics of China. "Number of mobile cell phone subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024 (in millions)." Chart. May 29, 2024. Statista. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/278204/china-mobile-users-by-month/
National Bureau of Statistics of China. (2024). Number of mobile cell phone subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024 (in millions). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: July 22, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/278204/china-mobile-users-by-month/
National Bureau of Statistics of China. "Number of Mobile Cell Phone Subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024 (in Millions)." Statista, Statista Inc., 29 May 2024, https://www.statista.com/statistics/278204/china-mobile-users-by-month/
National Bureau of Statistics of China, Number of mobile cell phone subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024 (in millions) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/278204/china-mobile-users-by-month/ (last visited July 22, 2024)
Number of mobile cell phone subscriptions in China from March 2021 to March 2024 (in millions) [Graph], National Bureau of Statistics of China, May 29, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/278204/china-mobile-users-by-month/