The Beijing Economic Technological Development Area plans to expedite development of the Industrial Internet, which refers to the integration of complex machinery with software, to promote economic growth, the area's administrative committee said.

The committee said the area, located in southeastern Beijing, will boost the application of the Internet of Things with traditional fields, including energy, autos and medical care. It has already attracted several leading companies like General Electric and smartphone maker Xiaomi.

Insiders said the Industrial Internet incorporates devices, such as computers, sensors, cloud computing, big data, and Internet-related infrastructure with traditional sectors such as manufacturing, tourism and finance.

The area aims to gain advantages in academic theory, technological innovations and industrial clusters to become an important area for the innovation of the Industrial Internet in China.

In recent years, the area has been advancing the cloud computing industry, with a current industrial chain that includes software, hardware, infrastructure, platforms and application.

According to the area's administrative committee, it has become a national leading center for its cloud computing industry chain. Output value of the chain is expected to surge.

The area is a forerunner in the development of cloud computing in Beijing and China. It has supported and promoted the implementation of an action plan to boost the development of cloud computing for the capital.

The area has attracted more than 200 companies in cloud computing, including Cloud Valley, Baidu Inc and China Unicom.

The area said it plans to stimulate further integration of emerging technologies such as cloud computing with sectors located in the area, including electronic information, bio-medicine, equipment and auto manufacturing, mobile communication and integrated circuits.

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(China Daily 12/16/2015 page12)