BEIJING and TOKYO — China’s fixed-line operator China Telecom has started offering a CDMA service in Shenzhen, a prosperous city adjacent to Hong Kong.
The service, called “Shihua Tong,” will not offer roaming. Samsung Electronics is supplying handsets. However, the CDMA service may be squashed as the Ministry of Information Industry (MII) plans to take back the spectrum that carries the service in 2002.
Meanwhile, the Chinese government has approved plans to split China Telecom into two parts. The northern part will merge with China Netcom and China Jitong and be called China Netcom Group. The southern part will retain the name China Telecom.
The move was part of the Chinese government’s efforts to promote anti-monopoly reform. China formally became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on 11 December and is expected to more widely open its door to foreign capitals.
The northern operation will hold 30 percent of the assets of China Telecom and will provide services in 10 provinces, while the southern operation will hold 70 percent of the assets of the old China Telecom and will provide services in the remaining 21 provinces. Both firms are believed to maintain dominance, and the break-up is not expected to impact Hong Kong-listed China Mobile or China Unicom. Both northern and southern companies are expected to receive a license for third-generation (3G) service in China.
