  A model displays a 3G mobile phone 
 set manufactured by a mainland telecom firm at the world telecom show in 
 Hong Kong December 4, 2006. A Chinese telecom official said China will 
 soon award 3G licences to operators. [newsphoto]
   | 
HONG KONG: China could "very soon" award domestic telecom operators licences 
to build 3G (third generation) mobile phone networks, the country's top telecom 
official said yesterday. 
"I cannot provide a specific timetable, but it could happen very soon," Wang 
Xudong, minister of information industry, told reporters at the ITU Telecom 
World 2006 being held in Hong Kong. 
Wang reiterated a commitment to enable operators to offer 3G services during 
the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, saying it is "well-founded and feasible." 
3G services enable video calls, faster data downloading speed and mobile 
Internet access. 
Wang said operators would be given enough time to deploy 3G networks. "The 
build-out of networks and the following trial operations could take some time." 
Industry observers estimate that setting up networks and trial operations 
could take at least one year before operators can formally roll out services to 
consumers. 
As a result, some believe licences could be handed out in the first quarter 
next year; and China Netcom (Hong Kong) CEO Zuo Xunsheng said at the expo that 
it could be as early as February. 
The acceleration of the 3G licensing process could be a shot in the arm for 
major telecoms companies, especially equipment and handset makers, which have 
invested heavily in 3G-related research and development. 
The building of the 3G networks could unleash purchase orders worth tens of 
billions of dollars but Wang suggested the windfall might be smaller than many 
expect. 
"It might not be feasible (for operators) to build national 3G networks 
immediately," he said. Some analysts expect regulators to allow operators to 
first build networks in select cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. 
Wang would not specify how many 3G licences would be handed out. There are 
four major telecoms operators in the country and analysts believe four licences 
could result in excessive competition while fewer than three could curb 
competition. 
"Government bodies are studying how many licences, three or four, are needed 
(to be awarded)," said Wang. 
An industry restructuring has been looming in China's telecom sector, which 
might see the government consolidate the top four operators into three while 
awarding 3G licences. 
It has been speculated that China Unicom, which runs cellular networks based 
on two different standards, may sell one network to China Telecom and merge the 
other with China Netcom. 
But Wang said he "never heard such a plan and we never studied such a plan." 
The minister added that the restructuring is "up to the board of directors of 
the four operators, which are all public companies." 
The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) has 
said it is working on reforming the domestic industry but denied reports that it 
would split China Unicom. 
"There has been much discussion on how to better realign the telecom 
industry," a senior executive with China Unicom told China Daily last week. 
"We believe the government would make a judgment at the right time to protect 
the interests of the country, the industry and consumers." 
(China Daily 12/05/2006 page1)