With the launch date for third generation mobile communication (3G) services in China still unclear, experts have called on the government to issue licenses quickly so that both operators and manufacturers can benefit.

Spectrum and capacity advantages will make 3G a valuable tool for providing better and cheaper rural coverage, thus encouraging operators to expand mobile services to western and rural areas of China, said Jean-Pierre Bienaime, chairman of UMTS Forum, at a forum here Friday.

UMTS Forum, which is promoting the European WCDMA 3G standard, co-organized the China Mobile Broadband Communications Leadership Seminar with TD-SCDMA Forum, an organization promoting the Chinese TD-SCDMA standard.

3G's higher voice capacity will mitigate spectrum availability issues in big cities and help deliver a low cost voice service, said Bienaime.

After years of rapid growth, China now has 443 million mobile subscribers, leaving little room for further expansion in urban areas. Telecom operators are now focusing on rural areas where low cost is a key factor.

"Without 3G licenses, Chinese operators will have to continue to invest heavily in outdated technologies such as 2G and PHS (personal handy phone system)," said Bienaime.
He predicted that if China issues the 3G licenses no later than the first quarter next year, operators would have enough time to plan a phased deployment of 3G and provide a mature 3G network for the 2008 Olympics.

The expert said that launching 3G now will give Chinese telecom equipment providers an opportunity to become major international players by enlarging their share of both domestic and international markets.

The Chinese-developed TD-SCDMA standard is currently being trialed in Beijing, Shanghai, Qingdao, Baoding and Xiamen. The maturity of the technology will be a factor in deciding China's 3G future.

"The trial is going very well and TD-SCDMA is in its final pre-commercialization stages," said Wang Jing, secretary-general of the TD-SCDMA Forum.

Wang said that the technology has proved that it can be commercially deployed and the government was expected to release the result of the trial soon.

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)