China established its first internet court in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province, on Friday.

The court has been established to handle the ever-increasing number of disputes related to the internet. It will focus on hearing six kinds of civil and administrative internet-related disputes, including online piracy and e-commerce. As a significant judicial innovation in the era of internet, the internet court aims to maintain network security, resolve internet-related disputes, and further promote the deep integration of the internet and society.

The entire court procedure, including filing a case, putting it on record, submission of evidence and testimonies, trial and verdict, will be all carried out online.

At present the court only accepts internet-related cases within the jurisdiction of Hangzhou, and significant internet-related cases assigned by the higher courts. In the future the internet court is expected to expand the range of its jurisdiction and the types of cases it adjudicates on.