2014 will represent the next stage in the development of China’s mobile internet industry, as the 4G network begins its implementation into the country.
Over the past few months the Chinese government has been laying out the foundations for the unveiling of 4G, having awarded 4G licenses to three of its major mobile internet providers. China Telecom, China Unicom Hong Kong and China Mobile have all been granted permission to provide the superfast network to customers. The 4G plan of China Unicom, the third major mobile operator in mainland China, has yet to be announced.
The government also announced that investment in the 4G service could reach $16billion (100 billion RMB) over the course of the coming year: that’s almost one-third of China’s total investment in mobile communications in 2014.
The news will be music to the ears of avid Chinese smart phone users and on-the-move business folk, who will enjoy an unprecedented improvement in the efficiency of their mobile internet.
So, what’s so good about 4G?
With 4G, it will be much quicker to surf the web on your smart phones, laptops and tablets, with speeds being closer to home broadband than 3G. It is expected that 4G will be roughly 5-7 times faster than 3G in terms of download speeds, meaning downloading your favourite games and music will be markedly more accessible. Due to the increased speeds, 4G will also be perfectly suited for other services requiring more-than-usual capacity such as video streaming, mapping and social networking sites.
With China being the largest smart phone-using country in the world, it is estimated that the introduction of 4G will eventually result in over 1 billion network-users in China alone.
When will it become available?
It is China Mobile who will be the first major network to roll-out 4G to Chinese consumers, a move greatly aided by its long-awaited deal with Apple in making the iPhone finally available on its network. As a result of the partnership, 4G will be available on China Mobile iPhones from as early as January 17. The deal, which has been in the pipeline for more than five years, is seen as mutually beneficial: Apple will gain access to a potential 760 million wireless China Mobile consumers, whilst of course China Mobile will benefit too as many of these customers will be demanding the iPhone.
Largely due to the deal, China Mobile is positive that it will sell in excess of 200 million smartphones over the course of 2014, with the bulk coming from 4G-keen consumers. The company also recently announced its new monthly 4G data packages, which will range between 50 RMB (8.5 USD) and 180 RMB (30 USD) depending on your model and contract. China Mobile plans to cover between 300-340 Chinese cities with its 4G network by the end of 2014.
Will 4G work on my existing 2G or 3G phone?
The bad news for consumers is that you will be unable to use your current iPhone 4, 4S or 5 (either HK edition or Chinese mainland edition) on China Mobile’s 4G network – this is due to the aforementioned phones’ TD-SCDMA specification not matching the TD-LTE specification of China Mobile’s 4G network.
Though some companies may have advertised your existing iPhone perhaps misleadingly as “4G”, by this they will most likely mean that the phone is a 4th generation model (i.e. an iPhone 4 or 4S). Unfortunately this is not the same thing as being compatible with the 4th generation cellular phone network (the 4G discussed in this article). Even if your iPhone 5 works on 4G in your home country, unfortunately this does not mean it will be compatible with China’s 4G network because China Mobile’s 4G network uses a communications protocol that is only used in China.
The good news is that, due to China Unicom’s iPhone 5C and 5S matching the TD-LTE hardware, you will be able to switch to a China Mobile 4G SIM card and use the service once it is up-and-running in January if you own one of those models.
Any other smartphone compatible with TD-LTE will also work on China Mobile’s 4G network – such models include the Samsung phones Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3, as well as the Sony Xperia Z1. Be sure to check whether your phone is compatible with TD-LTE.
If you have any questions concerning 4G in China or any other issues related to the mobile internet industry, please feel free to email us at info@maxxelli-consulting.com
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