Internet of Things Industry Swells

Chinas Internet of Things （IoT） industry has seen its output value exceed RMB 900 billion （about US $140 billion）， with a compound annual growth rate of over 25 percent， said Luo Wen， vice minister of Industry and Information Technology in early September at the 2017 World Internet of Things Expo in Wuxi， Jiangsu Province.

With a huge market， a complete industrial chain， and the worlds biggest mobile telecommunications network， China will take the lead in certain frontier IoT sub-sectors， according to Luo.

IoT is the network that connects traditional devices， such as home appliances and electronic products， to the Internet or smart phones， so that those objects can be remotely detected or controlled.

Luo revealed that a number of technological centers and laboratories will be established to support development in this field， while manufacturers will be overhauled to become more intelligent.

Luo also pointed out that the IoT will be expanded to a variety of industries including agriculture， logistics， energy， environmental protection， medical care， and other areas.

The IoT has been regarded as a new impetus to boost global economic growth. According to an annual IoT development report released at the expo， by the end of 2016 some 6.4 billion “things” had been connected to the Internet， and as many as 5.5 million new things are connected every day. The global IoT market will hit US $79 billion this year. The report also forecasted that the output value of Chinas IoT industry will surpass RMB 1.5 trillion by 2020.

Cooperation between domestic and overseas IoT research institutions and companies is expected to increase. China will actively engage in establishing international standards， said Wang Zhigang， vice minister of Science and Technology.

China to Be Top Global Display Screen Producer by 2019

China will become the worlds largest production base for display screens around 2019， according to data from China Video Industry Association and China Optics and Optoelectronics Manufactures Association.

Investment in assembly lines， either planned or under construction， for producing display screens for TVs， computers， smartphones， and other devices has reached RMB 800 billion （about US $120 billion）. LCD panels alone have received more than RMB 500 billion， according to the association.

Statistics show that the operating income of the display screen industry in Chinas mainland exceeded RMB 200 billion in 2016. In the first half of 2017， the aggregate area of display panels shipped from Chinas mainland was 57 million square meters， a third of the worlds total.endprint

Chinas display manufacturing has gained steam， with booming production and rising corporate profits.

Cross-border Zones to Be Extended to Facilitate E-commerce

China will set up more cross-border e-commerce pilot zones to facilitate trade and boost Chinas global competitiveness， under a decision made at a State Council executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang in late September.

The meeting decided to extend the success of such zones to more cities with solid infrastructure， strong trade， and e-commerce development potential. The State Council set up the original initiative in Hangzhou in 2015 before it was expanded to another 12 cities， including Shanghai， Tianjin， and Chongqing， starting in early 2016.

According to the Ministry of Commerce， 220 countries and regions were covered by Chinas cross-border e-commerce network as of 2016， with sales of RMB 5.85 trillion （about US $890 billion）， a 28.2 percent yearon-year increase.

The total volume of foreign trade via cross-border e-commerce in the 13 zones hit RMB 163.7 billion in 2016， up by more than 100 percent yearon-year. Over 400 third-party platforms were set up and 20，000 crossborder e-commerce trade companies established in the zones， creating over two million jobs.

The government will streamline administration， enhance oversight， and improve services. The meeting also decided that the transition period for the supervision of cross-border e-commerce retail imports will be extended from the end of 2017 to the end of 2018.

Facial Recognition Payment for Commercial Use Goes Live

Chinas e-commerce giant Alibaba launched the worlds first facial recognition payment technology application in September at a KFC restaurant in Hangzhou， signifying that China has taken the lead in the commercial use of the technology.

It takes approximately 10 seconds for a customer to pay the bill using the facial recognition service， substantially more efficient than other methods such as cash or card.

Data from a Chinese industrial research institute show that the market size of the facial recognition industry in China exceeded RMB 1 billion （about US $150 million） in 2016， and is estimated to reach RMB 5.1 billion by 2021.

“However， many factors such as light and angle influence the accuracy of the technology， so this mode of payment cannot be the only method of user authentication right now，” Liu Yunhuai， an expert with the Third Research Institute of Chinas Ministry of Public Security， pointed out.

“The future of the payment service still depends on safety assessments by supervision departments， and the aided validation process limits its convenience， so it is difficult to promote the technology widely right now，” said Li Junhui， a researcher at the China University of Political Science and Law.

Despite various difficulties in promoting the service， Li believes this mode of payment still has a bright future， as it is based on the data of users facial information and the application of artificial intelligence.

According to a Moodys report in mid-2017， the value of third-party e-payments in China has grown at an annual rate of more than 100 percent since 2015， offering consumers an alternative to bank payment channels at lower transaction costs. The rapid rise of third-party electronic payments is boosting Chinas online consumption of both products and services.endprint