Internet key to bridging digital divide

Nation's opening-up, tech development aiding poverty alleviation campaign

BEIJING - China's booming internet industry has played a key role in helping to bridge the digital divide nationally, according to experts and business executives.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates said China's opening-up and technological development are making a big difference, as the extreme poverty rate in the country has fallen from 60 percent in 1990s to less than 4 percent in 2010s.