(Yicai Global) March 14 -- The rapid development of China's information sector in recent years has propelled the country's server industry into a 'front-runner' from an 'also-ran,' Sun Pishu, chairman of Inspur Group Co., said yesterday.

Not one Chinese company ranked among the top five global players in the industry five years ago, but three have now entered the world's first echelon, Sun told media on the sidelines of the ongoing Two Sessions legislative meetings of China's top lawmakers in Beijing.

China's information sector benefits from state policies which spur companies to innovate and develop, he said. Collaborative inter-company innovation has also entered a new phase. Server firms no longer simply forge customer relationships, but build joint research and development teams with clients, he added. Server makers now consider the specific needs of internet companies and conduct tailored R&D to improve the competitiveness of both manufacturers and customers for mutual gain, Sun noted.

The first step in transforming and upgrading traditional domestic firms is to allay the real economy's fear of instituting Industrial Internet, he said. Though aware that cloud computing, Big Data, and artificial intelligence are the up-and-coming trends, they still deem them the sole prerogative of web companies. The second is to supply specific corporate requirements by providing customized services. Vigorously fostering Industrial Internet platform operators with strong capabilities is also necessary, Sun concluded.