Premier Li Keqiang's "Internet Plus" plan is not as positively received or as foolproof as he hoped for. Unveiled on March 5 in his Government Work Report, critics claimed that his solution for helping China's startup businesses thrive in their respective industries is misguided.
According to critics, Li may be right in saying that China needs more successful new businesses; however, his way to accomplish this goal is not done right. Many said that he could achieve more by actually doing less.
Even though the contracting economy is truly in dire need of a boost, Li's "Internet Plus," which is designed to push the economy to a higher level, is said to be too intrusive to lead to beneficial results.
Critics opine that although China's tech sector is progressing positively, not enough jobs can be created at a pace to catch up with the rapidly dwindling economy.
They believe that if the government spends more than just infrastructure building and give direct support to tech companies, these companies may be affected by meddling central, provincial and local officials. This can lead to adverse results.
China's economy also does not only need more jobs--rather, it needs higher-paying jobs.
Li's plan cannot be more novel and ideal, according to Xinhua News Agency.
"The favorable wind of the 'Internet Plus' is set to push the Chinese economy to a higher level," said the site.
"The plan," it added, "aims to integrate mobile Internet, cloud computing, big data and the Internet of Things with modern manufacturing, to encourage the healthy development of e-commerce, industrial networks, and Internet banking, and to help Internet companies increase international presence."
The problem would be on making sure the plan does not lead to too much intervention on the government part that the economy cannot progress on its own, or even slide into more decline.