Fixed-line telephone network operator China Telecom is urging the government to make up its mind on the future of TD-SCDMA, a home-grown standard for 3G (third generation) mobile communications.

Speaking at a 3G symposium on Friday, Ye Lisheng, vice-dean of the Beijing Research Institute of China Telecom Corp, said the authorities cannot afford to waste time in distributing operating licenses for the new technology.

"It's time (for the government) to make up its mind on 3G policies," Ye said.

"If we keep waiting for (the maturity of) TD-SCDMA, it may be harmful to the development of 3G (in China)."

He also expressed disappointment that TD-SCDMA has yet to win full favor from foreign companies despite years of effort by Datang, the major developer of the standard.

Ye's remarks to the symposium, organized by BlogChina, Shanghai-based China Business News and China Daily publication China Business Weekly, represent the most serious concern expressed so far by a domestic telephone operator over the immaturity of the TD-SCDMA standard.

The Chinese Government has been prudent in its approach to policies regarding 3G mobile communications, largely due to the slow development of 3G telephony in the global market and the immaturity of TD-SCDMA.

TD-SCDMA competes with European-backed 3G standard WCDMA and US-backed CDMA 2000, and is the only one of the three systems yet to be deployed commercially.

Despite some hiccups in the early stages of its development, 3G technology is now gaining increasing momentum in the global market.

The Chinese Government is hoping all products, ranging from base stations to mobile phones, will be ready for commercial use by mid this year.

According to an industry insider, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) submitted a proposal to the State Council last November suggesting that China Telecom and China Netcom adopt the TD-SCDMA as the major standard in 3G networks.

Many parties, including the Ministry of Information Industry (MII) and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) are all involved in the 3G decision-making.

The NDRC's proposal is just one of the plans on the table for discussion.

It also suggested that, if the ongoing TD-SCDMA trials do not go well, China Telecom and Netcom bundle the WCDMA and TD-SCDMA as they can complement each other technically.

However, Beijing-based research group Analysys International believes operators will be reluctant to build and run a pure TD-SCDMA network due to the question marks lingering over the prospects of the standard.

Indeed, Ye's remarks underline China Telecom's growing anxiety about the possibility of a government-imposed standard which has yet to be proved fully viable.

Ye also urged the government to give the green light to China Telecom and China Netcom to conduct cellular business.

"It's unreasonable that only two firms are offering cellular services," he said.

"It's better to award three or four operators with the 3G licences (to spur competition)."

China Telecom and Netcom are eager to move into the cellular market as the fixed-line business is slowing down and nearing saturation.

Ye said the number of cellular subscribers in the Chinese mainland, recorded as 330 million at the end of last year, would almost double by 2006.

(China Daily February 7, 2005)