On November 18, 1999, the Chinese government officially decided that Shanghai would bid for the 2010 World Expo. With support from home and abroad, Shanghai won the bid on December 3, 2002, at the 132nd General Assembly of the International Exhibitions Bureau.

    Expo Online, officially known as Expo Shanghai Online, is an integral part of World Expo 2010. It functions as the introductory channel, extension and supplement of the real Expo, in the form of a website combining 3D exhibitions, events and interactions.

    Expo Online will present a virtual park corresponding to the 5.28 sq km-Expo site of the real Expo 2010, and virtual pavilions and exhibitions of all participants corresponding to their physical counterparts. To be brief, Expo Online is the online edition of the physical World Expo 2010 Shanghai China.