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November 23, 2010, 12:44 AM EST
By Bloomberg News
(Updates with subscriber data in third paragraph.)
Nov. 23 (Bloomberg) -- China United Network Communications Group Co., parent of the nation’s only mobile operator offering Apple Inc.’s iPhone, issued new rules restricting the resale of the smartphone for use on other networks.
Customers may have their deposits frozen if the iPhone is separated from its bundled subscriber identity module card, or SIM card, Unicom Group said on its website. The iPhone4 is in short supply in China because some buyers have purchased the handsets for resale, the statement dated Nov. 22 said.
Even with the exclusive iPhone agreement Unicom has been unable to match larger rival China Mobile Communications Corp. in the addition of users to the high-speed, third-generation networks that allow smartphones to surf the Internet and download music. China Mobile last month added 1.7 million 3G subscribers, compared with Unicom’s 1.1 million, according to data the companies released this month.
“It does show that the company is concerned about customers buying the phone and using it on China Mobile’s network,” Paul Wuh, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Samsung Securities Co., said in an e-mail today. “China Mobile’s customers are not willing to switch over to China Unicom’s network.”
China Mobile had a total of 575 million mobile phone subscribers at the end of last month, including 16.98 million 3G users. Unicom had 163.8 million mobile subscribers, including 11.66 million 3G customers.
The company’s listed unit China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. dropped 0.6 percent to HK$10.40 at the 12:30 p.m. trading break in Hong Kong. China Mobile’s Hong Kong-listed unit fell 1 percent to HK$78.10.
--Editors: Garry Smith, Chua Kong Ho.
To contact the reporter on this story: Edmond Lococo in Beijing at elococo@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Young-Sam Cho at ycho2@bloomberg.net
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(Updates with subscriber data in third paragraph.)
Nov. 23 (Bloomberg) -- China United Network Communications Group Co., parent of the nation’s only mobile operator offering Apple Inc.’s iPhone, issued new rules restricting the resale of the smartphone for use on other networks.
Customers may have their deposits frozen if the iPhone is separated from its bundled subscriber identity module card, or SIM card, Unicom Group said on its website. The iPhone4 is in short supply in China because some buyers have purchased the handsets for resale, the statement dated Nov. 22 said.
Even with the exclusive iPhone agreement Unicom has been unable to match larger rival China Mobile Communications Corp. in the addition of users to the high-speed, third-generation networks that allow smartphones to surf the Internet and download music. China Mobile last month added 1.7 million 3G subscribers, compared with Unicom’s 1.1 million, according to data the companies released this month.
“It does show that the company is concerned about customers buying the phone and using it on China Mobile’s network,” Paul Wuh, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Samsung Securities Co., said in an e-mail today. “China Mobile’s customers are not willing to switch over to China Unicom’s network.”
China Mobile had a total of 575 million mobile phone subscribers at the end of last month, including 16.98 million 3G users. Unicom had 163.8 million mobile subscribers, including 11.66 million 3G customers.
The company’s listed unit China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. dropped 0.6 percent to HK$10.40 at the 12:30 p.m. trading break in Hong Kong. China Mobile’s Hong Kong-listed unit fell 1 percent to HK$78.10.
--Editors: Garry Smith, Chua Kong Ho.
To contact the reporter on this story: Edmond Lococo in Beijing at elococo@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Young-Sam Cho at ycho2@bloomberg.net
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