A forum on the development of China's Internet industry, jointly sponsored by the Information Office of Beijing Municipal government and the website 21DNN.COM, opened Thursday in Beijing.

He Luli, vice-chairwoman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Hu Qili, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and Beijing mayor Liu Qi attended the opening ceremony of the 2001 Beijing Forum on Internet Development.

Participants will exchange views on security and management of information networks, legal framework and international cooperation relating to information networks, and the development and application of wide-band and wireless technologies at the two- day forum.

Experts said that the Internet industry still has a bright future here in China, where the population with Internet access totaled some 26.5 million by June 2001.

(People's Daily 09/07/2001)