China is committed to promoting the internet's development with mutual trust and global governance, calling for international cooperation and communication in the digital economy, said Liu Liehong, deputy director of the Cyberspace Administration of China.
Liu said amid rising trade protectionism in the world, China is willing to develop a digital economy with openness and shared benefits.
"China is willing to share development opportunities of the internet with other countries," Liu said at a State Council Information Office news conference on Friday. "We welcome foreign internet companies to develop their business in China, on the condition that they abide by local laws and regulations as well as respect the nation's history and culture."
As part of the country's efforts to boost the digital economy, the fifth World Internet Conference, themed "Creating a Digital World for Mutual Trust and Collective Governance－Towards a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace", will be held in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, on Nov 7-9.
More than 1,500 governmental delegates, international organization representatives, leading internet entrepreneurs and experts all around the globe have been invited. They include Turing Award winner Whitfield Diffie and Andrew Ng, founder and CEO of the artificial intelligence-based online learning platform Deeplearning.ai.
Nineteen subforums are planned, covering a wide range of topics related to AI, 5G, financial technology, cybersecurity, digital economy as well as the internet and public services.
By mid-September, 447 enterprises had confirmed their participation in the Light of Internet Expo, including 424 exhibitors. Some 151 companies will unveil new products and technologies at the event.
The conference will release the latest versions of two blue books: the World Internet Development Report 2018 and China Internet Development Report 2018. They will include evaluations of internet development in key countries and Chinese provinces and cities, focusing on the latest technologies, applications and development of the sector.
The event also will exhibit smart applications related to driverless sightseeing vehicles, virtual reality, augmented reality and facial recognition.
Ge Huijun, publicity chief of Zhejiang province, said the region's digital economy has grown fast since the first World Internet Conference in 2014. In this year's first half, the added value of the core industries of the digital economy reached 234.8 billion yuan ($34.1 billion) in the province, up by 16.4 percent year-on-year.
