China testing multiple vendors' GPRS cell-phone systems
By Jack Robertson, Electronic Buyers' News
Oct 19, 2000 (8:56 AM)
URL: ebnews.com
China Mobile, the cell-phone arm of the dominant, government-owned China Telecom, is testing new General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) wireless systems from different vendors in six separate provinces, hoping to select one or several of the vendors to launch full service next year, according to the contenders. GPRS, a packet radio relay enhancement to the pervasive GSM cell-phone standard, is considered a so-called "generation 2.5" approach before the full ITU-approved third-generation (3G) global wireless systems are launched in several years.
HuaWei Technologies, a Shenzhen-based major telecommunications OEM, said its prototype GPRS system is being tested in Niaoning province. Harvey Qi, marketing manager for Ericsson (China) Co.'s Shenzhen office, said his firm's GPRS system is being tested in Guangzhou province. Motorola and Nokia GPRS systems, among others, are under trials in other provinces. Alcatel of France has already completed its tests in Suzhou and has become the first to supply its GPRS equipment to China Mobile for operational service.
China Unicom, the second competitive wireless network provider in the country, is also conducting its own GPRS trials in Shenzhen using Motorola systems.
GSM is the predominant cell-phone service offered by both China Mobile and China Unicom in a country that now has the seconed-largest number of mobile-phone users in the world. Adding GPRS packet-transmission capability would be even added business for equipment firms and suppliers already ramped up to sell handsets, base stations and switching products. The initial GPRS installations are expected to link the major cities to allow faster and higher- quality relay of cell-phone traffic across the country. |
