BEIJING — As of March, the number of online video users in China had hit 850 million, up by 126 million from the end of 2018, according to a report on China's internet development released on April 28.

The online video users accounted for 94.1 percent of the country's netizen population. The number of short video users reached 773 million, or 85.6 percent of all internet users, representing an increase of 125 million from the end of 2018, said the report issued by the China Internet Network Information Center.

Both the user number and usage time of online video have seen a significant increase early this year due to the novel coronavirus epidemic, said the report, noting that online video had become the second most used internet application next to instant messaging.

Short video platforms are increasingly integrated with other industries, in particular playing an important role in driving economic development in impoverished regions, it said.

Users of online entertainment applications have grown in number during the epidemic, with online music users reaching 635 million and online game users 532 million, accounting for 70.3 percent and 58.9 percent of the total netizen population respectively, according to the report.