Attending My First World Internet Summit, Shanghai

Attending the 50th World Internet Summit  (held between 08 Nov to 11 Nov 2012) as a guest is part of the reason for me to visit Shanghai. Travelling to China, even with the benefits of experience and the latest Lonely Planet guide, still presented me with some unexpected outcomes.

My Apology…

Most seriously, I could not access my own blog on WordPress! Oh dear, for it meant that I would not be able to add posts for the entire duration of my China visit. To the many followers of my blog, please allow me to apologise in this very first post after my “forced” absence. In addition, my default browser Google and my Google mail worked only two times out of five; not good in this day and age of the Internet where universal access is the promise.

Over 1000 Enthusiastic Participants Eager For Internet Business Success

Over 530 Million Internet Users in China…

The recent Summit is only the first time that the organisers have brought back the event to China since the inaugural event some seven years ago. The time has come. Now, China has over 530 million Internet users within its borders. The enthusiastic crowd of a thousand participants spent four long days at the Ritz Carlton Theatre Conference Centre absorbing topics that focus on the Internet marketing trend, enterprise Internet marketing success and learning the secrets of Internet business success. I learnt that they had come from across China; from the cities to the far-flung provinces in the west and the northeast. Some had to ride trains for 30 hours to come to Shanghai. The cacophony of various accents and dialects added added a sense of urgency to take action and not be left behind. The hunger for success and the scramble to leverage businesses on the Internet would soon make the Chinese market the largest online.

Cyber Police In China

The Great Firewall of China…

In joining the WTO, China has upgraded and modernised its telecommunications hardwares and infrastructures to cater to market demands and for trade. The new information technology enabled the flow of information into and out of China. Not too comfortable with that, the government acquired matching modern equipment to monitor the information flow and introduced censorship of the Internet via new laws and regulations. And so, there’s another wall in China, the Great Firewall.