Hi Jim,
Thanks for the article. I think it was during the FY00 CC that Bill Hews indicated they had just completed a network covering Shenzhen. Perhaps this is related.
Nice to see the optical-wireless network being taken seriously, with the backing of major Chinese authorities (see excerpt below). Here is a situation where the incumbent may have a hard time protecting the monopoly; or the opportunity is so large they don't really care; the central planning could result in a very advanced, multi-purpose communications network. We should all be so lucky.
A deal win in China could bring significant cost reductions to other markets for successful equipment suppliers.
Regards, Rob
THE UPSTART
Although it is a later entrant than Unicom and Jitong, the centre of attention is China Netcom which is making strides in the market with backing from the powers that be. Officially, it is part-owned by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the ministry of railways, the Sarft and the Shanghai municipal government, which kick-started the company with a mere $50 million. However, months after Unicom was forced to disband its China-China-Foreign investments, China Netcom was allowed to sell a 12 per cent stake to a consortium of Goldman Sachs, Newscorp, Bank of China and China Construction Bank for $325 million.
From CNC web site:
China Netcom Corporation Limited ("CNC" or the "Company") is a facilities-based broadband telecommunications operator in China. The Company provides a full spectrum of services and solutions to meet the broadband telecommunications needs of businesses and individuals. Its core business includes providing Internet broadband access and integrated telecom services to residential and corporate customers, and building the infrastructure for China's New Economy. Its comprehensive collection of telecom licenses, including the license to operate international gateways out of China, puts it in peer with incumbent operators such as China Telecom.
In 2000, CNC has finished the first phase construction of a nationwide fiber optic backbone network, CNCNet and metropolitan access network, which pioneered the deployment of advanced IP over DWDM transmission technology in the world. The company recently extended its last mile broadband access network to cover residential users using Fiber LAN technology.
cnc.net.cn
NR's from CNC site:
*China Mobile Becomes the First Carrier Client of China Netcom (March 23, 2001)
*China Netcom Launches Hong Kong Company and Operation(March 15, 2001)
*China Netcom Annouces Completion of US$325 Million Private Equity Placement (February 19, 2001)
http://www.cnc.net.cn/english/investor/news.html
Other NRs:
China Netcom to Leverage WHEREVER.net's Global IP Network
Business Editors & High-Tech Writers
HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 19 , 2000--WHEREVER.net (Nasdaq:WNET), a worldwide leader in advanced IP-based communications solutions, announced today that China Netcom Corporation Ltd. (CNC), a major Chinese carrier, has signed an agreement to use WHEREVER.net's global network for IP-based communications. Under terms of the agreement, CNC will be able to offer its customers high quality, low cost VoIP services through international routing of voice and fax calls over WHEREVER.net's global network. For WHEREVER.net, the agreement extends its already significant presence in the Asian market by allowing termination of WHEREVER.net traffic onto CNC's network.
The collaboration with CNC is expected to result in significantly lower Cost of Service expenses for WHEREVER.net for delivery of its China-bound traffic. Both parties to the agreement will benefit from their joint provision of less expensive, higher-quality service to customers in the Greater China region and the world over.
China Netcom, the new telecommunications carrier in China, recently deployed CNCnet, an 8,000 mile fiber optic DWDM (dense wavelength division multiplexing) network offering 40 gigabits per second carrying capacity to support its integrated IP-based communications services strategy.
"The addition of WHEREVER.net to our family of IP-based communications partners is significant for a number of reasons," stated Edward S. Tian, China Netcom's CEO. "WHEREVER.net brings a high-quality network with rapidly expanding global reach, a growing presence in Asia, and significant experience with international VoIP and virtual private network (VPN) solutions. Our relationship with WHEREVER.net will allow us to offer expanded services to our customers very quickly."
"China will be a driver of significant IP-based telephony traffic in the future and will continue to be a very important market for WHEREVER.net," said Johnny Lee, CEO of WHEREVER.net. "Our selection by CNC highlights the quality and expanse of our network, particularly in Asia, and should contribute even further to the tremendous growth we've seen for communications services over our IP network. With this agreement, WHEREVER.net becomes one of only a few foreign telecom players in the vast Chinese market. We look forward to working with CNC to provide the highest-quality IP-based telecommunications services regionally and globally."
About China Netcom Corporation Ltd.
...
businesswire.com
Edward Tian, President of China Netcom
Biographic Profile
Tian Shuoning (Edward Tian)
(Pronounced: Tyan Shuo-ning)
President, China Network Communications Co., Ltd. (China Netcom, CNC)
Based on his achievements at AsiaInfo and his contributions to China’s IT industry, Tian was invited to be president and CEO of China Netcom in March 1999, posts he formally took later that year. China Netcom is China’s third largest telecom after China Telecom and China Unicom. This was the first time a state-owned telecom enterprise (Netcom) had recruited a top executive from a non-state enterprise.
Netcom officially got off the ground in October 1999, when it won approval from the State Council to build a broadband IP network in China. It was backed by some US$50 million from such state investors as the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the State Administration for Radio, Film & TV (SARFT), the Ministry of Railways and the Shanghai Municipal Government. Tian is likely to take full advantage of these connections, as he has his eye on the 90-100 million cable subscribers to SARFT-regulated networks, for example. The plan is for the company to go public some time in 2002-2005.
Tian, granted complete authority in hiring decisions, lured top Chinese executives from the likes of Motorola, Microsoft and Marconi with stock incentives and competitive salaries. Eager to run Netcom like a Silicon Valley company, he was allowed to draft his own corporate statutes modeled after American principles of corporate governance.
...
chinaonline.com |
