Mobile overtakes desktop in China

Mobile phones are now the most common way for people to connect to the internet in China, a report has said.

For the first time, desktop computers are no longer the leading method for the country's 538 million connected citizens to get online.

The report from the China Internet Network Information Center (CINIC) said over 50% of the year's new internet users were from rural areas.

A fall in smartphone costs has been the key cause of growth, experts said.

"Mobile phones are a cheaper and more convenient way to access the internet for [residents in] China's vast rural areas and for the enormous migrant population," said the report from the state-linked CINIC.

Mobile internet users now number 388 million, up almost 10% since the start of the year.

"Mobile phone prices continued to drop," the report said.

"The emergence of smartphones under 1,000 yuan [$157, £100] sharply lowered the threshold for using the devices and encouraged average mobile phone users to become mobile web surfers."

The total number of those online has risen 5% since the end of last year, many of whom are very active in cyberspace.   (BBC.co.uk)