According to Strategy Analytics, sales of mobile phones using China’s own 3G standard (TD-SCDMA) will grow 7-fold this year. The reason quoted is obvious – China Mobile plans to aggressively push new devices and services.
The world’s largest mobile operator in terms of number of subscribers launched 3G services last year with 3.4 million clients signing up for the service almost immediately. Further growth, however, hasn’t followed due to lack of available products and the technology’s teething problems.
Last month, China Mobile said it would spend 45 billion Yuan ($6.6 billion) to extend its 3G coverage and roll out more than 80 TD-SCDMA handset models as part of its 3G network push. Quite a few major mobile companies — including Nokia, Samsung, ZTE, Huawei, MediaTek, ST-Ericsson and Spreadtrum — expect to benefit from the growth of TD-SCDMA.
At the moment, Nokia — which is the largest mobile phone maker in the world — has only a single TD-SCDMA device with plans to launch addition products later in the year…
[Via: Reuters]