China Plans to Jump on Info Highway

Japanese software distributor Softbank Corporation has joined U.S. affiliate Unitech Telecom and a Chinese telecommunications company to hook up China to the Internet. Currently, Net connections are provided in three of China's provinces, according to Softbank company officials. Twenty-four cities throughout China will have Net access early next year.

Softbank will provide $10 million to the venture, and Unitech will provide maintenance, marketing, and software services. The companies predict a profit of $33 million in the year 2000.