China's online population rises to 538 million

An industry group says China's fast-growing population of Internet users has risen to 538 million people, driven by the rapid growth of mobile Web surfing. The China Internet Network Information Center report released Thursday shows the number of Internet users is up 11 percent over the figure reported for the same time last year. The government-sanctioned group said the number of people who go online from mobile phones and other wireless devices rose to 388 million. That was up 22 percent from a year earlier. China's ruling party encourages Internet use for business and education but tries to block access to material considered subversive or obscene.