Expect more free sport on your mobile, but not for long

I was reminded recently of the amazing progress that has been made in mobile Internet technology.

Despite being on holiday, deep in the countryside of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, I was able to watch a live soccer match, on my smartphone, being held in a different province, between two leading international teams.

There were no TV sets in my hostel in Guilin, but its wireless Internet service meant I could still watch the match between Spanish La Liga giants Real Madrid and Italian Series-A counterparts Inter Milan, being played in Guangzhou, the capital city of Guangdong province.

Guilin is a modern international tourist city, but nearby local Zhuang and Yao ethnic people still plant rice in long, narrow paddy fields on hill sides, as they have for hundreds of years.

The rich, green mountain views were stunning, and offered a fantastic contrast to my busy urban life－but as a football fanatic, I was still desperate not to miss the match.

Thanks to China's growing investment in Internet services, I didn't.

This would not have been possible five years ago, when Chinese soccer fans could only watch big games via live TV coverage.

This Real vs Milan match was covered live by LeTV.com, one of the country's leading online video platforms which provided commentary both in Mandarin and Cantonese.

The 40,000 crowd in Guangzhou was joined by 10 times that number online, said Gao Fei, CEO of the Internet business group at the LeTV.com.

"A growing number of people who previously watched TV have shifted to mobile terminals. That's why we have invested a lot in covering major sport, to boost our presence in the online video industry," said Gao.