NEC Corp. said it signed an agreement to establish a third-generation mobile infrastructure joint venture in China with Wuhan Research Institute of Post and Telecommunications. The new firm will engage in 3G equipment development, manufacturing, sales, maintenance and system engineering.
WRI will hold 65 percent of the new firm, Wuhan Fiberhome Mobile Communication Inc., and NEC and NEC Telecom China will hold a 30-percent stake. Other companies will hold a 5-percent share. The new company will have initially 100 employees and will be established this month in Wuhan City.
WRI was established by the Research Institute of the Chinese Post and Telecommunications Ministry and is one of the top telecommunications infrastructure manufacturers in China. The joint venture will expand W-CDMA and develop TD-SCDMA technologies based on NEC’s W-CDMA infrastructure technology and 3G network design and optimization technologies, using WRI’s maintenance, sales, and service network and established relationships with telecommunications carriers.
NEC also has a 3G partnership with Siemens AG, which has invested considerable resources in the Chinese 3G market, particularly in the homegrown TD-SCDMA technology. NEC Telecom (China) will work with Siemens and through its joint venture with WRI to expand its 3G infrastructure business in China.
China, the largest wireless market in the world, has continually delayed its 3G licensing process and has not announced yet which 3G technologies or the number of carriers that will operate in the country.
“NEC hopes to take a leading position for the construction of 3G infrastructure in China with its abundant technologies and experiences in 3G commercial markets in Asia and Europe,” said Takakuni Kuki, executive general manager of NEC’s Mobile Network Operations Unit. “In order to accelerate the progress of the Chinese 3G market, NEC will build up basic production as early as possible to meet the increasing demand of the market.”
Numerous other wireless suppliers have established partnerships with Chinese companies to try to garner a larger share of the country’s 3G market.
