Asia - Europe Business

Huawei TD Handsets to Hit Shelves in Q4

Huawei Technology plans to issue four or five models of TD-SCDMA-capable mobile phone handsets in the fourth quarter of this year. The company also plans to release its first Ophone, or TD-SCDMA-based smartphone, in April next year.  Huawei had over 100,000 of its Android-based 3G phones on the market in Europe.

Lisa

China Mobile 3G Users Rise to 2.5m

China Mobile currently has 2.5 million TD-SCDMA users and will have no difficulty reaching its 2009 goal of 3 million, reported by a Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) official Zhang Xinsheng.

Reports in late July said that China exceeded 1 million TD-SCDMA users, while China Mobile has announced a 30 million TD-SCDMA user target for 2010.

Lisa

MIIT: 192m Mobile Internet Users By Sept.

By September, China had 192 million mobile internet users, up 62.7% year-on-year, reported by the Minister of Industry and Information Technology. The market last year was worth RMB 11.7 billion, an increase of 54.4% year-on-year.

 

Lisa

Unicom: 3G Review; Guangzhou iPhone Sales

China Unicom has conducted its first round evaluations of WCDMA coverage and quality in 77 Chinese cities, finding 30 cities reach its "ideal" standard and another 19 had "good" coverage.

The carrier has begun selling Apple's iPhone in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, Caijing.com reports. According to the report, five models of iPhone hit shelves in 40 authorized locations in the city, including five Gome stores and three Suning stores.

An unnamed insider said China Unicom's iPhones are manufactured in Shenzhen, Guangdong province and that each unit costs around $110 to produce.

 

Lisa

Unicom Announces Q3 Earnings

China Unicom announced October 30 that it booked net profit of RMB 9.34 billion in the first nine months of 2009. The company's net profit was RMB 6.62 billion in the first six months of 2009.

Total revenues reached RMB 114.93 billion in the first three months, up from RMB 76.32 billion one quarter ago. Telecommunications services generated revenue of RMB 112.22 billion, with Unicom's mobile business contributing RMB 51.79 billion and fixed-line services accounting for RMB 59.83 billion.

Monthly average revenue per user (ARPU) among the company's mobile subscribers was RMB 41.6, compared to RMB 41.7 one month ago, while broadband ARPU fell to RMB 59.5 from RMB 60.2 in the first half.

Lisa

Datang Telecom: 18% Growth in 9 Mth Profit

Equipment provider Datang Telecom booked net profit of RMB 24.25 million in the third quarter of this year, bringing the company's profits for the first three quarters to RMB 38.96 million, up 17.94% year-on-year, the company announced October 29. Total business revenue reached RMB 7.02 in the third quarter, compared with RMB 5.27 billion in the same period of last year, while the company's revenues for the first nine months of the year hit RMB 2.18 trillion, compared with RMB 1.73 trillion in the year-ago period.

 

Lisa

Fourth French 3G License Application

Free Mobile, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Iliad Group, filed an application on 28 October 2009 with ARCEP for the allocation of the fourth 3G mobile telecommunication licence in France.

 

Iliad Group wishes to be granted a mobile telecommunication licence to speed up the expansion of mobile multimedia technologies and meet strong consumer demand for more user-friendly, cheaper and more innovative offerings.

 

If selected, the Free Mobile project will give a boost to the French mobile technology market: it will trigger significant capital expenditure in France from 2010 and lead to significant job creation.

 

Lisa

China Telecom Cuts Greater China Roaming Fees

China Telecom plans to reduce its roaming fees for users travelling, it would reduce its roaming fees by 65% for CDMA users in Taiwan and Macao, as of November 1, the company announced October 27. In September, China Telecom said it expected to reduce its international CDMA roaming charges by 50%.

Lisa

Huawei, Unicom Deploy First Operations Support System

China Unicom partnered with Huawei Technologies to deploy China's first Operations Support System (OSS), the Huawei U2000 Integrated Network. The OSS will provide a unified management system for Unicom networks and departments, including customer service and sales.

Lisa

 

China Mobile, Telecom to Aid Gov't Initiatives

China Mobile and China Telecom signed framework agreements with China's Ministry of Housing and Urban-rural Development on October 23 to cooperate on information infrastructure.

Under the agreement, China Telecom will assist with e-government, urban-rural information infrastructure, local network standardization, carbon emission reduction and environmental protection over the next five years.

China Mobile plans to support the ministry with e-government, information infrastructure, housing programs, public funds and environment protection.

Lisa