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China Mobile buys wireless broadband licence in Hong Kong

By Wang Xu (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-01-23 10:43

China Mobile, together with two local operators, have acquired wireless broadband licences in Hong Kong for a combined HK$1.54 billion ($198 million), the city's telecom regulator said on Jan 22.

China Mobile, the world's largest mobile operator by subscribers, won the license for HK$494.7 million ($63.3 million). The local operators are CSL New World Mobility and Genius Brand, which is a joint venture of a joint venture of PCCW and Hutchison Telephone Company.

Hong Kong now has 17 mobile operators, which are more willing to introduce new technology given the fierce competition. China Mobile hasn’t said what services it will offer under the licence, but analysts say the mobile operator could use the frequency band to deploy its TD-SCDMA service in Hong Kong.

China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom recently won the approval to launch 3G services on the mainland. Industry insiders said the three operators will only need to pay a nominal fee for using the frequency bands, rather than a substantial license fee as in other countries.