China doubles 4G users to 201m in six months
China Mobile added 80 million 4G connections in the first five months of the year
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China’s 4G user base has reached 201 million by the end of May 2015, doubling from 2014.
According to the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), China Mobile added 80 million 4G connections in the first five months of the year, taking its total to 170 million.
China Telecom’s 4G connections more than doubled to 18 million during the same period, whereas China Unicom’s increased from four million in the fourth quarter to an estimated 13 million.
As the Chinese telecom market nears saturation, subscriber growth has slowed for both China Mobile (1.2 per cent) and China Telecom (2.7 per cent), but China Unicom suffered a sharp decrease in total connections, with its mobile connections falling to 290 million after peaking at 299 million in the fourth quarter. China Mobile had 816 million connections at the end of May, whereas China Telecom had 191 million.
Read: Zong brings WiFi devices as competition intensifies
The majority of the 4G subscribers for all three operators are 3G customers who are migrating to the advanced technology.
Further, China Mobile is continuing to invest aggressively in its 4G network, allocating CNY72.2 billion ($11.8 billion) this year, aiming to have one million 4G base stations this year. It deployed 740,000 last year.
But the competitors should be able to gain some momentum in the continuing year as the government has set up China Tower, a joint venture scheduled to take control of almost one million towers owned by China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom in August.
Read: India to get 4G services by year-end, says Reliance chief
The increased coverage the tower company will enable, particularly in rural areas, coupled with China Telecom and China Unicom being awarded nationwide FDD-LTE licences in February by the MIIT, will help counterbalance the dominant power of China Mobile, C114.net said.
With the government putting pressure on all three operators to boost mobile broadband speeds and reduce prices, and overall subscriber growth slowing, analysts expect 2015 to be a difficult year.
The article originally appeared on Mobile World Live
According to the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), China Mobile added 80 million 4G connections in the first five months of the year, taking its total to 170 million.
China Telecom’s 4G connections more than doubled to 18 million during the same period, whereas China Unicom’s increased from four million in the fourth quarter to an estimated 13 million.
As the Chinese telecom market nears saturation, subscriber growth has slowed for both China Mobile (1.2 per cent) and China Telecom (2.7 per cent), but China Unicom suffered a sharp decrease in total connections, with its mobile connections falling to 290 million after peaking at 299 million in the fourth quarter. China Mobile had 816 million connections at the end of May, whereas China Telecom had 191 million.
Read: Zong brings WiFi devices as competition intensifies
The majority of the 4G subscribers for all three operators are 3G customers who are migrating to the advanced technology.
Further, China Mobile is continuing to invest aggressively in its 4G network, allocating CNY72.2 billion ($11.8 billion) this year, aiming to have one million 4G base stations this year. It deployed 740,000 last year.
But the competitors should be able to gain some momentum in the continuing year as the government has set up China Tower, a joint venture scheduled to take control of almost one million towers owned by China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom in August.
Read: India to get 4G services by year-end, says Reliance chief
The increased coverage the tower company will enable, particularly in rural areas, coupled with China Telecom and China Unicom being awarded nationwide FDD-LTE licences in February by the MIIT, will help counterbalance the dominant power of China Mobile, C114.net said.
With the government putting pressure on all three operators to boost mobile broadband speeds and reduce prices, and overall subscriber growth slowing, analysts expect 2015 to be a difficult year.
The article originally appeared on Mobile World Live