While universal standard is necessary to the development of Internet, excessively specific standard may hinder innovation, said a leading Chinese expert at a sub forum of the Second World Internet Conference on Friday.

A good Internet standard in the 21st Century will be one that sets the basic rules so as to allow more space for free innovation, said Qian Hualin, Internet Hall of Fame Inductee, at the session of "Promote Internet Development through Technology and Standards" at the sub forum of Internet Technology and Standards.

His view is echoed by Yang Xiaoya with International Telecommunication Union TSB, who said that a good standard should be a proper standard.

China has witnessed a rapid development of its Internet industry over the past two decades. As of July 2015, the number of Internet users had reached 668 million, the most in the world, according to official figures. All cities and towns, and 93.5 percent of administrative villages in China now have access to the Internet.

The thriving Internet industry and the gigantic market potential have also bred countless Internet companies, and some of them, such as Baidu, Tencent and Alibaba, have become international goliaths.

The Second World Internet Conference, the most high-profile Internet related event in China, is taking place in the picturesque water town of Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, Dec 16 to 18.

The conference, with a goal of "building a cyberspace community of shared destiny", has gathered together more than 2,000 participants, including state leaders, government officials, business leaders, Internet titans, and experts from more than 120 countries and regions.