China Mobile has opened a wireless service center and Internet cafe at an altitude of 17,000 feet at the Everest base camp, making it the world's highest such site, according to People's Daily Online.
According to reports, the Internet cafe is aiming to effectively protect the Olympic torch relay teams' communications needs at Mount Qomolangma in Tibet. China Mobile has built a business office and Internet cafe at an altitude of 5,200 meters at Mount Qomolangma base camp to provide mobile services and Internet services to government officials, mountain climbing members and journalists.
Maybe they'll add an oxygen bar for out-of-shape journalists with underdeveloped hemoglobin.
Several news stories have noted that China's Internet user base increased by more than 70 million in 2007 to a count of 213 million at year's end. Little noted is that 23 percent of these users access the Internet from mobile devices, the remainder counted as broadband users.
The statistics, released by the China Internet Network Information Center and reported by ChinaTechNews, do not seem to specify how many of these mobile users also use broadband, and I can't find data on whether people use broadband at home or at work.
CINIC also reported (translated) that almost 40 percent of users said the top reason they used the Internet is for instant messaging, edging out e-mail as the top application.
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