谁给个hs网站:The Rise of China's Telecoms - Focus discussi...

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The Rise of China's Telecoms

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In less than 20 years, the Chinese telecommunications sector has developed from a primitive government monopoly into the largest cellular and Internet communications market in the world. This change is a testament to the country's rapid social and economic development as well as the increasing sophistication of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the industry. But with domestic markets rapidly approaching their saturation point for basic services, sustaining this growth will require deepening and diversifying the domestic sector, something that is certain to prove its toughest challenge yet.


Much of the importance of China's telecom sector stems from its sheer size: 850 million cellular users, 300 million fixed-line customers and nearly 500 million Internet users. China Mobile, the world's largest cellular operator, has more than 500 million customers on its books, while its closest domestic rival, China Unicom, has more than 150 million. In an era of steady income growth and increasing geographic mobility among ordinary citizens, China's telecom firms have been able to build on these economies of scale to establish themselves as formidable global players.


Due to its obvious economic and political significance, telecommunications is among the most closely guarded of the government's "strategic industries" -- sectors deemed integral to the national interest and therefore controlled entirely by the government.



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Liberalization began in 1994, when the Ministry of Post and Telecoms (MPT) was dissolved. MPT's regulatory functions were transferred to the newly established Ministry for Information Industry (MII), while its operational competencies became China Telecom. At the same time, other ministries were allowed to enter the market (.pdf), such as China Unicom from the Ministries of Electronics, Energy and Railways and Jitong from the Ministry of Electronics Industry.


In the years just before and after China's World Trade Organization (WTO) accession in 2001, the government initiated a number of further restructuring measures. By 2006, following a series of spin-offs and splits, the Chinese telecom market consisted of six SOEs: China Telecom, Mobile, Netcom, Unicom, Railcom and Satcom, completing the transition from government monopoly to state-run oligopoly.


Building on strong domestic development, China's telecommunications sector has enjoyed a period of impressive international expansion over the past decade. Under the banner of the "Go Global" campaign, national flagship companies have built up their international operations through a range of overseas purchases and cooperative ventures with foreign partners. Greater technological capabilities and cost advantages have also allowed Chinese firms to rapidly establish themselves as important vendors of telecom products and services in international markets.



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A Huawei Technologies booth is seen at a technology show in Singapore


However, along with the economic and commercial implications this realignment of the global telecom industry has raised, the expansion of Chinese firms and technologies has also been a source of persistent cybersecurity concerns. All of China's telecom companies have close ties to the state, and the government's insistence on retaining tight control over the industry makes assuaging these concerns a key challenge for future expansion.


Following the initiation of domestic reforms in 1994, the internationalization of China's telecom sector began in earnest with the country's accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001. Regulatory changes allowed limited foreign participation in domestic equipment markets, while the "Go Global" campaign -- designed to foster "national champions" capable of competing in international markets -- extended a range of tax reliefs, soft loans and subsidies to major domestic players.


International expansion has been based on a three-stage model: first, "importing and transferring" foreign technology; second, "digesting and absorbing" it; and, third, "growing and exporting" homegrown derivatives. In reality, this has often involved re-engineering.


As China's telecom industry expands at home and abroad, the biggest challenge for major players is to improve perceptions of their credibility and integrity. (World Politics review)