BEIJING, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The development of public cloud computing services enable micro and small enterprises to stand at the same scratch line with big players in the digital economy, according to the head of tech giant Alibaba's research arm AliResearch.
Public cloud computing platforms spare micro and small firms heavy investment, allowing them to leverage advanced technologies and digital tools for commercial innovation, AliResearch director Gao Hongbing said Saturday at the New Economy Think Tank Summit.
Alibaba Cloud has served some 80 percent of China's tech firms and over half of listed companies on China's A-share market, according to him.
The public cloud is computing services offered by third-party providers over the public internet, which is open to anyone who wants to use or purchase them. The industry has seen robust growth in China as more private and public organizations embark on digital transformation.
Data from global market intelligence firm International Data Corporation showed that China's public cloud market topped 5.4 billion U.S. dollars in the first half of 2019.
Gao said it is important to create a nurturing digitalized business environment for small firms, and big platform companies should play their roles to this end.
Over 4,300 Taobao Villages where villagers use Alibaba's Taobao online marketplace to do e-commerce business have mushroomed across the country over the past years, and the group's inclusive online bank MYbank has offered credit worth over 4.2 trillion yuan (about 600 billion U.S. dollars) to small firms, according to Gao.
