China launched a group of internet satellites into space on Sunday afternoon, according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, the country's leading space contractor.

The satellites, built by the China Academy of Space Technology, a Beijing-based subsidiary of the corporation, are the fifth batch of China's low-orbit internet network. They were placed into their preset orbit by a Long March 6A carrier rocket that lifted off at 6:03 pm from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi province, the company said.