4G Network Key to China Mobile-Apple Partnership:

China Mobile, the world's biggest mobile carrier recently announced it started offering Apple 5S and 5C as of 17th January. ­It is likely that China Mobile and Apple have high expectations to improve respective sales from this deal, however given the current characters of the market, and the Smartphone purchasing trend in China, the two companies involved will need to do a lot more to yield any significant return.

The latest data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, the global market leader in consumer panels, reports by the end of Q3 of 2013, approximately 63% of all Apple handsets in China are already on China Mobile's network, which means even before the recent sales agreement, over half Apple devices is already on China Mobile's network.

The report also shows, for every 100 smartphones on China Mobile, approximate 18 handsets are iPhones, a similar ratio for China Unicom and China Mobile who have had been selling iPhone under their official sales agreement for a while.

Obviously, customers on China Mobile who wanted an iPhone, obviously had found a way to source one via other channels, and since Apple has already made some progress within China Mobile, its room for growth is somewhat limited, and unlikely to see a huge sales boost for both organizations.

China's 4G Smartphone Market Set for Explosive Growth This Year:

China's domestic market for 4G smartphones is poised for a massive liftoff this year as shipments grow sixteenfold from 2013 levels, according to a new report from IHS Technology.

Shipments in 2014 of 4G smartphones within China are forecast to reach 72.4 million units, up nearly 1,500 percent from just 4.6 million last year, with the market expected to take off after the second half. It will be the first big year for 4G smartphones in only its second year in the country, up from a practically nonexistent base two years ago.

For the next few years the 4G smartphone market in China will see unstoppable growth, doubling in shipments next year to 144.1 million units, rising another 53 percent to 219.8 million, and then ending 2017 at 298.5 million units.

"With support from the government and increasing clamor from the public, 4G smartphones will be the new hot market in China," said Kevin Wang, director for China research at IHS. "Already Beijing has granted licenses for TD-LTE, China's homegrown version of the 4G Long Term Evolution standard, to the state's three carriers. This way, China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom can all launch commercial 4G services whenever they wish."

China Mobile Said to Be Considering Buying a Large Stake in Vodafone:

China Mobile may be considering buying a large minority stake in Vodafone as the two companies look to work together in developing countries.

Citing financial sources, the Mail on Sunday newspaper reported that China Mobile could be looking at taking a stake of between 5 to 20 percent in Vodafone.

They added that the Chinese firm also wanted to set up a joint venture with Vodafone to target the African market as the UK company has a strong presence in a number of countries there.

The two companies worked together on a recent bid for a mobile license in Myanmar, but dropped out of bidding after concluding that the deal did not meet their "strict internal investment criteria".

China Mobile has made no secret of its desire to expand overseas, and has a sizeable investment in Pakistan. However a deal by a company that is majority owned by the Chinese government to buy a large stake in Vodafone would almost certainly sound regulatory alarm-bells in Europe.

Fitch: China's Telco Rate Changes Will Not Reduce China Mobile's Dominance:

Fitch Ratings says that China's latest cut in mobile interconnection rates will be insufficient to achieve its goal of creating a level playing field by redistributing profits from China Mobile to smaller operators.

Fitch believes that China Mobile will retain its strong market leadership position as we estimate that the proposed changes will reduce EBITDA by just 3%. The EBITDA of the second-largest operator, China Telecom, will likely rise by 3%. The ratings agency believes these changes in themselves will not be material to the companies' market positions and credit ratings, although China Mobile's ratings headroom will be reduced.

With effect from 1 January 2014, the mobile interconnection rate that China Telecom and third-largest operator China Unicom pay to China Mobile for most calls will be reduced to CNY0.04/minute. However, the rate that China Mobile pays to China Telecom and China Unicom will be maintained at CNY0.06/minute. In addition, the settlement rates for SMS and MMS would also be reduce to CNY0.01/message and CNY0.05/message respectively.

Fitch expects competition to partially offset the potential benefits to China Telecom and China Unicom, and put further pressure on China Mobile's profitability. The cut in the mobile interconnection rate payable by China Telecom and China Unicom will lower their average cost for voice traffic and may lure them to reduce tariffs to gain market share. In 1H13, the average mobile voice revenue per minute for China Telecom was CNY0.10, and CNY0.08 for China Mobile. However, Fitch does not expect a price war, as China Telecom and China Unicom focus more on mobile data than the traditional voice business.

Pakistan's PTCL Makes Offer to Buy Warid Telecom

Pakistan's PTCL says that it has submitted a binding offer to buy local rival mobile network, Warid Telecom, although it has not disclosed how much it has offered to pay.

The brief announcement was made through a letter to the Karachi stock exchange.

Warid Telecom has been put up for sale by its UAE based owner, the Abu Dhabi Group, who are reportedly seeking bids in the region of US$1 billion for the company.

PTCL is itself controlled by another UAE based company, Etisalat.

Both PTCL and China Mobile had previously expressed an interest in buying the company, although China Mobile later dropped out.

At Least 45 Million IPhones Already Active on China Mobile's Network:

Although there is still considerable confusion about whether Apple and China Mobile have formally signed an iPhone contract, there is already doubt about whether such a deal would be the bonus that Apple is looking for.

China Mobile has apparently started taking pre-orders for the iPhone handsets in advance of its 4G network launch, although the head office denies any such deal between the two companies exists.

However, it has long been known that a sizable number of its customers -- in the many millions -- were already using an iPhone handset on its GSM network, with data limited to Wi-Fi access only.

The mobile network is now revealed to have at least 45 million existing iPhone customers. While many of them will want to upgrade to the newer models that will finally support cellular based data, they will have to wait for the mobile network's own 4G coverage to expand.

Apple had been seeing a possible US$3 billion in revenues next year from China, but the sizable existing market, increased competition from Samsung and home-grown vendors, and the state of China Mobile's 4G coverage are now putting that in doubt.

Such revenues would need at least 17 million fresh iPhone sales into the market, and there is doubt now that the 4G network would be large enough to generate such sales -- when put in addition to sales to other handset vendors.

China Mobile's 4G network is due to be activated for customers later this week.

China Mobile selects Micropross NFC Forum test tools for acceptance testing:

China Mobile, one of the world’s most important mobile network operator, has selected Micropross NFC Forum test tool for compliance testing of NFC enabled devices, before allowing them to be sold on the China Mobile point of sales.

NFC (Near Field Communication) is one of the most discussed technology of the moment, because it paves the way for new use cases around mobile devices, such as smartphones, or tablet PC. Those use cases include payment, exchange of data, and easy synchronization with other hardware such as headsets. The number of NFC enabled devices grows on a daily basis, and in order to verify the good interoperability between those devices, Micropross has developed a full range of compliance platforms, aiming at payment (EMVCo), NFC (NFC Forum) and general contactless (ISO) conformance testing.

China Mobile, in order to ensure the best experience to their users, have the strict policy of submitting all devices submitted by their different vendors to a full acceptance round, in their own laboratories. With the growing momentum of NFC, it became important for China Mobile to include tests for this technology, and after a comprehensive evaluation process, they selected Micropross Contactless Test Station as the tool they would use for this purpose.

ITU Telecom World 2013 sets agenda for far-reaching changes in ICT sector:

ITU Telecom World 2013 closed its doors last week following a packed programme of networking, knowledge sharing and industry showcasing. The event featured an impressive global line up of showfloor participants, sponsors and partners, including Ooredoo, China Mobile, Huawei, Intel, Alcatel-Lucent, ABS, AT&T, Microsoft Lync, NTT Group, AIS Group, True, DTAC, Telkom South Africa, Rohde & Schwarz & LS Telecom.

Pavilions from around the world highlighted opportunities for dynamic ICT investments to a global audience, featuring Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Cameroon, China, Gabon, Ghana, Japan, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Lao P.D.R, Malaysia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand (including supporting partners MICT, NBTC and TCEB), Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

“We have enjoyed four busy days of conversations, showcasing and networking at ITU Telecom World 2013,” said ITU Secretary General, Dr Hamadoun Touré. “We welcomed the world’s youngest country, South Sudan, organizations at the cutting edge of our ICT ecosystem as well as young innovators who are already helping shape the future. It has been my privilege to join such a truly broad global debate. As we prepare to return home to different corners of the globe, my overarching hope is that we can take the lessons learnt from our debates here and apply them directly in our lives. Let’s become true agents of change, working to change the world for the better.”

Hosted by the Kingdom of Thailand, ITU Telecom World 2013 convened over 6000 participants from 153 countries worldwide.

“It has been an honour to host ITU Telecom World 2013 and welcome its global participants, showcasing our ICT industry to the world, via all our many activities within the Thai pavilion,” said Group Captain Anudith Nakornthap, Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Thailand. “Utilizing the platform that ITU Telecom World 2013 provides has helped us demonstrate and strengthen Thailand’s position as an ICT hub in the ASEAN region.’’

The seismic change taking place in the ICT industry and its far-reaching impact was the core theme underpinning all activities at the event.

ITU Telecom World 2013 sets agenda for change in ICT sector:

ITU Telecom World 2013 wrapped up this week following a packed programme of networking, knowledge sharing and industry showcasing. The event featured an impressive global line up of showfloor participants, sponsors and partners, including Ooredoo, China Mobile, Huawei, Intel, Alcatel-Lucent, ABS, AT&T, Microsoft Lync, NTT Group, AIS Group, True, DTAC, Telkom South Africa, Rohde & Schwarz & LS Telecom. 

Pavilions from around the world highlighted opportunities for dynamic ICT investments to a global audience, featuring Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Cameroon, China, Gabon, Ghana, Japan, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Lao P.D.R, Malaysia,  Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand (including supporting partners MICT, NBTC and TCEB), Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

“We have enjoyed four busy days of conversations, showcasing and networking at ITU Telecom World 2013,” said ITU Secretary General, Dr Hamadoun Touré. “We welcomed the world’s youngest country, South Sudan, organizations at the cutting edge of our ICT ecosystem as well as young innovators who are already helping shape the future. It has been my privilege to join such a truly broad global debate. As we prepare to return home to different corners of the globe, my overarching hope is that we can take the lessons learnt from our debates here and apply them directly in our lives. Let’s become true agents of change, working to change the world for the better.”

Hosted by the Kingdom of Thailand, ITU Telecom World 2013 convened over 6000 participants from 153 countries worldwide.

“It has been an honour to host ITU Telecom World 2013 and welcome its global participants, showcasing our ICT industry to the world, via all our many activities within the Thai pavilion,” said Group Captain Anudith Nakornthap, Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Thailand. “Utilizing the platform that ITU Telecom World 2013 provides has helped us demonstrate and strengthen Thailand’s position as an ICT hub in the ASEAN region.’’

Brazil and Africa are the basis for Chinese interest in Portugal Telecom

China Mobile is interested in expanding into the Portuguese and Brazilian market and Portugal Telecom is expected to be its preferred investment target, because of its operations in Africa and Brazil, according to market analysts.

The board of China Mobile, which is considering investing in Germany, South Africa, Brazil, Portugal and North Korea, has started the process of analysing the macroeconomic and economic climate of five countries, according to Chinese English-language newspaper the Morning Whistle.
If it goes ahead this will be the latest in a series of Chinese investments in Portugal following transactions that made large Chinese companies major players in the Portuguese energy sector (China State Grid Corp and China Three Gorges) and the financial sector (Bank of China).
Portugal Telecom has a 25 percent stake in one of the most important Brazilian mobile telecommunications companies, Oi.

In Angola, it owns 25 percent of mobile telecommunications operator Unitel, 40 percent of Multitel (Internet access and data provider) and also controls ELTA, Angola’s telephone directory company.
In Mozambique it owns directory company, Listas Telefónicas de Moçambique and Teledata (ISP and data), in Cape Verde it has a stake in CV Telecom (40 percent) and Directel (60 percent) and in São Tomé and Príncipe it has a majority stake in Companhia Santomense de Telecomunicações (51 percent).

It is also present in Namibia, Kenya and in Timor.

In an analysis issued last week, analysts from Portuguese bank BPI said that, if the investment went ahead, “Portugal Telecom would be the most likely candidate given its international presence both in Brazil and in Africa.”

As well as Portugal Telecom, another potentially interesting operator would be Zon, which is currently being merged with Sonaecom, and which has a significant stake in Cable TV in Angola and whose shareholders include Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos.

China Mobile is the world’s largest mobile phone operator by number of customers and, according to analysts from Trefis, Portugal Telecom, which ahs a market capitalisation of US$5 billion, is within the company’s grasp.

“Portugal is going through a big recession and with record unemployment it may not make financial sense to enter the market at this stage. However, comparatively low valuations may encourage China Mobile to put its foot in the door of a developed market,” the analysts said.
Trefis also noted that the mobile communications market in Portugal is similar to China’s, as it has three large operators: TMN (PT group), with 7.3 million customers, Vodafone Portugal, with 6.6 million, and Optimus, with 2.5 million.

In March 2012 the chairman of China Mobile, Wang Jianzhou, said that the board planned to expand the company’s business to other markets but that this had not been possible due to the high price of acquiring companies that were already set up in those markets.

Privatisation operations in Portugal, which have become necessary because of the country’s economic and financial crisis, have led to Chinese companies entering the market.