China Electronics News: mobile operators 3G proposition how to crack

The footsteps of 3G has been getting closer and closer, for the domestic telecom operators, to understand the characteristics of 3G, the construction of 3G networks, the preparation of operating 3G business has begun. However, with the change of telecom market forces, with 3G technology, especially the development of TD-SCDMA technology, with the global 3G market operation level, each operator to reconsider their 3G strategy. Already have a mobile network operators in the hands, and how to network construction? How to establish the profit model of the 3G era?

Network: the development focus

Both China Mobile and China Unicom, they have a full coverage of the voice network, and in the 2G network has 300 million users. For them, entering the 3G era, the strategic significance of the two, one is the high speed access to improve the capacity of data services, improve data service ARPU value, this is the business development strategy; the other is a 2G user to 3G transplantation, at a lower cost to provide voice services, the transition to IP this is the network, network technology strategy. To start the construction of 3G network, operators will mostly use two ways of network. One is the first in the developed city business needs large data network, and then gradually expand the scope of coverage of the city; the other is the first network area in the medium-sized city, to achieve a wide range of network coverage. For mobile operators, basically using the first approach, stages, echelon coverage.

The implementation of network is the city ceded to echelon. According to expert analysis: the penetration rate of mobile communication first echelon Beijing, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Guangdong, 2004 mobile penetration has reached 95.3%, 81.6%, 50.6% and 69.2% respectively, while the number of mobile users accounted for 30.6% of the total, but the growth rate has been lower than the national level, so the use of 3G for voice users is of little significance. In these 4 provinces, the city's main target users 3G mobile data services users and high-end users. The Internet penetration rate of the first echelon of Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Guangdong, the Internet penetration rate in 2004 was 27.6%, 19.1%, 25.8%, 11.4% and 14.9%, is the development of the domestic Internet market is the first echelon, best original mobile communication operators 3G data users. Compared to two in the first echelon of the province, the city, the Internet penetration rate in the first echelon of Tianjin, and Tianjin on the penetration rate of mobile communication in the second echelon of the first, in 2004 the mobile penetration rate of 42.5%, very close to the first echelon of the 50% target. Comprehensive consideration of two indicators, Tianjin will be included in the first echelon of 3G wireless network.

In view of the 3G mobile data traffic uncertainty, and the characteristics of high-end users of large volume of business, the original construction of 3G wireless network of mobile operators in the first echelon, at the initial stage of the construction should take high capacity, seamless coverage and high QoS planning, and the construction of 3G network indoor coverage in 3G; the development stage and mature stage, further increase network capacity, improve indoor coverage, improve the level of QoS.

China Mobile, a technology official said, in these areas to build WCDMA network, while considering the introduction of a higher access rate technology HSDPA, in order to reflect the advantages of 3G network data services. At the same time, experts advise, for China Mobile, taking into account the possibility of WCDMA and TD-SCDMA hybrid network, so the TD-SCDMA technology should pay more attention and research.

Business model: re positioning in industrial fission

The arrival of 3G, will impact on the formation of the industrial chain in the era of 2G. Because of the relatively simple 2G industry chain, the relationship between operators, equipment manufacturers, content providers, terminal providers and users is relatively more simple sales and purchase, the other does not assume business risk. Operators through the end of the business for the user provider can get most of the telecom business revenue, which is part of the Commission with agents. In this industry chain, the operator of a dominant, other participants are in a subordinate position.

But with the industry value chain fission, the difficulty to control the mobile operators on the whole industry in the increase, some aspects of the strength and status on the rise, the bargaining power and influence on the whole industry is also enlarging, will eat a part of the industry value. Some analysts predict that in the 2G era mobile operators to be able to share more than 95% of revenue, and in the 3G era, only a share of the proceeds of 50%, the content providers will be divided by 40%.

Therefore, in the 3G era, the competition has evolved from the original operator of a single competition for the entire value chain competition. This competition will be decided on the first to gain the competitive advantage of the whole industry chain, to be able to create a virtuous, positive feedback mechanism from this industry chain. Mobile operators need to re positioning in the industry value chain fission.

It is not difficult to see, mobile operators in the 3G era, tend to get involved in multiple areas of the industry chain, such as the current two mobile operators are to enter the terminal strategy to provide links. China Mobile one or two years ago began to try to customize the phone, and into the mobile phone sales channels. Zhou Jianming, deputy general manager of China Mobile technology has made it clear that: China Mobile in the 3G era, all using custom terminals." While China Unicom to promote the application of CDMA 1X data services, has experienced the importance of customized terminals, while their attention has been deep into the chip level. Unicom believes that the ability of the network system side is far greater than the capacity of the terminal, resulting in a technical ability to provide a higher operating speed, but the actual