Tag Archives: China Mobile

China Mobile latest Business & Financial news from Doug Young, the Expert on Chinese Companies, (former Journalist and Chief editor at Reuters in Asia)

News Digest: December 7, 2011

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The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on December 7. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.

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◙ GM (NYSE: GM) China Sales Growth Accelerates as Auto Demand Shrinks for Ford, Honda (English article)

◙ 54% of China Mobile (HKEx: 941) Data Card Users on 2G Networks – Memo (English article)

◙ Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) Responds to the Citron Report (PRNewswire)

◙ Merck Establishes New MSD R&D Asia Headquarters in Beijing (Businesswire)

◙ Samsung (Seoul: 005930) Plans Flash Chip Line in China (English article)

News Digest: November 18-20, 2011

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The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 18-20. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.

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◙ Lawmakers probe Chinese telecoms firms in U.S. (English article)

◙ Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) iTunes App Store Begins Accepting RMB Payment (English article)

◙ New Oriental (NYSE: EDU) Refutes Allegations Made by OLP Global (PRNewswire)

◙ Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Halts B2C Site Lekutian Investment – Source; Lekutian Denies (Chinese article)

◙ China Mobile (HKEx: 941) to Deploy 10-20K TD-LTE Base Stations in H1 2012 (English article)

 

China Mobile’s TD 3G Fading Fast 中国移动3G网络前景黯淡

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China Mobile’s (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) brief chance to generate excitement for its struggling 3G network based on a homegrown technology is rapidly disappearing, with even the networking equipment sellers who once saw big bucks in the technology known as TD-SCDMA now starting to abandon the standard. Chinese media are reporting that the latest round of contracts to expand China Mobile’s struggling 3G network received only lukewarm response from equipment suppliers, who have quietly started raising their prices to help build a network based on the problematic technology. (English article) The reports aren’t much more specific, but the general tone suggests the equipment suppliers, whose ranks include domestic names like Huawei and ZTE (HKEx: 0763; Shenzhen: 000063), as well as global names like Ericsson (Stockholm: ERICb) and Alcatel Lucent (Paris: ALUA), are finally realizing their TD-SCDMA products will have little or no market outside China, even as they spend big money to address problems with the technology that doesn’t have any users besides China Mobile. Similar realizations by Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) were likely a major factor behind reports last week that its sputtering talks to create an TD-SCDMA iPhone had finally broken down, in another major setback for China Mobile and its 3G network. (previous post) China Mobile has steadily lost share in China’s 3G market due to its poor technology and equally poor roll out of the network, reflecting lack of focus at the company as it prepares for a major leadership change with the upcoming retirement of long-serving Chairman Wang Jianzhou. This latest development seems to indicate that trend will continue for a while still, with China Mobile’s share of the 3G market  — which has already slipped to 42 percent from 45 percent at the beginning of the year – likely to slip further still to a third or even less over the next couple of years.

Bottom line: A cool response by equipment suppliers to China Mobile’s latest 3G network expansion reflects ongoing problems with a network whose share could soon dip below a third.

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ China Mobile: Poor 3G Approach Yields Weak Results 中移动3G策略不当 拖累公司三季度业绩

◙ TD-LTE Hits First Delay, More to Come? TD-LTE技术首次延期 未来还会更多？

◙ China Mobile Shuffle: Sea Change Coming? 中移动高层变动或引发重大变化？

News Digest: November 5-7, 2011

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The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 5-7. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.

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◙ PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) Sells China Bottling Assets to Tingyi (HKEx: 322) (English article)

◙ Alibaba, Tencent (HKEx: 700), Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) in Land Grab (Chinese article)

◙ China Mobile (HKEx: 941) TD-SCDMA Procurement Bids Rise – Source (English article)

◙ Sinopec (HKEx: 386), PetroChina (HKEx: 857) Up on Fuel-Pricing Change Speculation (English article)

◙ UCWeb Sues Tencent (HKEx: 700) For Unfair Competition (Chinese article)

Tidbits: Alibaba, Anhui Conch, Sinopec, China Mobile

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There are quite a few too good stories out there today, so here are some quick takes on a few that didn’t make the headlines but look interesting nonetheless.

— The chief executive of Alibaba’s Etao has held a high-profile media briefing to announce his company, operator of a search engine specializing in e-commerce, will invest 1 billion yuan in its business. (English article) This event is a clear signal to the market that Alibaba intends to stand by this investment despite recent moves by a number of major e-commerce sites, including 360Buy, Dangdang (NYSE: DANG) and Suning (Shenzhen: 002024), to block their pages from inclusion in Etao’s search results.

— Sinopec (HKEx: 386; NYSE: SNP) is reportedly in talks to buy a stake in Galp’s Brazilian Unit, for what’s sure to be an overinflated price. (English article) This latest potential mega-acquisition by a Chinese oil major just shows how China’s policy of buying global assets at any cost to feed its growing economy continues to be in effect, even as oil prices show every sign of coming down for an extended period.

— The China Daily is reporting that Anhui Conch (Shanghai: 600585; HKEx: 914), one of the country’s leading cement makers, aims to go global by purchasing distressed international assets for bargain prices, as most of the world’s construction industry suffers during the global downturn. I would look for this company to carry through with this plan with a major announcement or two over the next year, but have serious doubts about its ability to manage such global assets.

— Chinese media are reporting that China Mobile‘s (HKEx: 941) long-running talks with Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) to make a TD-SCDMA iPhone have finally broken down, confirming what I had already suspected several weeks back. (Chinese article) If true, which seems likely, this would be a relatively major setback for China Mobile, which was counting on the iPhone to breathe some life into its anemic 3G business.

News Digest: November 3, 2011

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The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 3. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.

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◙ ZTE (HKEx: 763) Ranks Fourth in Q3 2011 Global Handset Shipments (English article)

◙ Lenovo (HKEx: 992) Q2 Profit Up 88 Percent, Beats Forecast (English article)

◙ China Telecom (HKEx: 728) Names Yang Jie as New CEO of Listed Company (Chinese article)

◙ China Mobile (HKEx: 941) Ends Talks With Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) For TD-SCDMA iPhone (Chinese article)

◙ China Power in $784 million JV with China Coal (English article)

Apple Overlooks China — Again 苹果再次撇开中国内地市场

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In what is becoming an increasingly common refrain, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) has once again overlooked China in the global launch for its latest smartphone, the iPhone 4S, in what looks like an expression of growing frustration with its difficult Chinese partners. The company, whose China sales have exploded on the popularity of its smartphones, tablet PCs and desktop computers, has announced a second wave of launch markets for the newest iPhone starting next week following the initial launch in the US and several other major markets last month. (company announcement) The second wave includes Hong Kong and South Korea in Asia but contains no mention of China, with Chinese media reporting a launch for the domestic market won’t occur until year-end at the earliest. (Chinese article) This latest China snub looks similar to Apple’s global launch for its iPad2 in May, when China was also absent from the original list. In that case, however, Apple quickly reconsidered and launched the iPad 2 in China just a week after the global launch. (previous post) In this case, in my view, the absence of China from the latest global iPhone launch probably reflects Apple’s growing frustration with China’s 3 telcos, most notably China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU), the country’s only official iPhone supplier to date. Unicom has recently shown a tendency to botch even the simplest product launches, and is fast squandering its chances to pick up share on dominant carrier China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL). For their part, China Mobile and China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA), China’s third telco, have also proven difficult partners for Apple, with each repeatedly hinting they were on the verge of signing iPhone deals only to fail to announce anything. It’s still possible we could see an iPhone 4S deal in China before year-end if Unicom can reach an agreement. But based on past experience, I wouldn’t bet on seeing any official iPhone 4S tie-ups in China anytime soon.

Bottom line: Apple’s failure to include China in its latest iPhone 4S launch list reflects its difficult relationship with China’s mobile carriers, especially China Unicom.

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ China Mobile: Where’s the 3G iPhone? 中移动4G网络稳步推进 3G版iPhone或遇阻

◙ Apple Takes A Second Look at China for iPad 2 苹果重新考虑中国市场

◙ China Telecom Set for Boost With Imminent iPhone Deal 中国电信借力iPhone

Sputtering Unicom’s Latest Excuse: Lack of Leadership

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China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU) is reportedly conducting a massive search for top-level managers in many provinces, once again underscoring how the company is badly in need of strong new leadership as it increasingly appears to be squandering its golden opportunity to gain market share over dominant carrier China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL). According to Chinese media reports, Unicom is looking for people to head its operations in a large number of provinces, continuing a search that dates back as far as February last year. (Chinese article). It’s been nearly 3 years now since Unicom merged with rival China Netcom in a major industry restructuring, and certainly the company can be forgiven for not filling key positions for the first year or so after such a big change. But 3 years is quite a long time, and if it’s taking them this long to fill these key positions it’s no surprise that the company is making little or no progress at bolstering its position in China’s mobile market. Most will recall that Unicom was given a golden opportunity to gain share over China Mobile, which controls over two-thirds of China’s mobile market, nearly 3 years ago when it was awarded a 3G license based on the world’s best technological standard. By comparison, China Mobile received a big handicap by having to develop its 3G service using a homegrown standard with lots of problems. Despite that, Unicom’s share of the 3G market has remained stagnant since the beginning of the year, at around 30 percent. Meantime, China Mobile’s 3G share has eroded from 45 percent in April to 42 percent in September, with the country’s third-largest carrier, China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA) picking up all of those loses. Unicom, which also has the enviable advantage as China’s only official seller of Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhones, previously blamed a lack of 3G handsets for its failure to pick up share despite its obvious technological advantages. Now it looks like it’s blaming lack of strong management at the provincial level. Either way, Unicom seems to be better at making excuses than doing good business, and I’m fast losing confidence in its ability to bolster its position under current management.

Bottom line: Unicom’s latest problems in filling top management jobs at the provincial level reflect a poorly run company that is fast squandering its golden opportunity to pick up market share from rivals.

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Unicom’s Sputtering 3G: Blame It On the Handsets 联通幡然醒悟 借低价手机扩张3G市场

◙ China Mobile Shuffle: Sea Change Coming? 中移动高层变动或引发重大变化？

◙ China Telecom Set for Boost With Imminent iPhone Deal 中国电信借力iPhone

News Digest: October 21, 2011

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The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on October 21. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.

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◙ China Mobile (HKEx: 941) Net Misses Estimates as Competition Cuts Margin (English article)

◙ Suntech (NYSE: STP) Responds to Solar Trade Petition (PRNewswire)

◙ Saab Owner Spurns Chinese Takeover (English article)

◙ Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Receives RMB 100 Mln in Government Cloud Subsidies – Report (English article)

◙ 360Buy Slows Down US IPO Process, Still Seeking Foreign Underwriter (Chinese article)

China Mobile Shuffle: Sea Change Coming? 中移动高层变动或引发重大变化？

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There’s been a flurry of noise this week from both the boardroom and from shareholders of China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL), in the latest signs that long-serving conservative Chairman Wang Jianzhou will soon retire to bring in younger blood and new ideas. What’s most interesting here is that shareholders are taking advantage of the situation to make their case for bigger dividends from cash-rich China Mobile, as well as a more aggressive M&A policy — both of which could help to boost the company’s stagnant shares if the new top managers take notice. Domestic media are reporting that China Mobile’s state-run parent has just formed a new 9-member board, which includes Wang as chairman and his two heirs-apparent, Xi Guohua and Li Yue, as board members, along with 5 outside directors. (Chinese article) The inclusion of Wang’s two successors, along with so many outside directors, is the latest indication that Beijing is looking to bring some new ideas to China Mobile after the departure of Wang, whose 5 years at the top of the company saw it consolidate its market-leading position but do little else to expand its business. Investors, sensing that change is coming soon, have suddenly started clamoring for China Mobile, which has a cash pot of $50 billion, to use that money to pay out more dividends and assume a more aggressive global M&A policy. (Chinese article) Investors have made similar calls from time to time over the years, but most of those have failed to sway Wang, who seems to come from the old school that believes you can never save enough cash. Xi and Li both come from technical backgrounds and don’t really look like a bold new generation of leaders that China Mobile really needs to bring back some excitement to the company. But that said, they certainly can’t be more conservative than Wang, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the company boost its dividend payout ratio and also pursue some interesting global M&A once Wang retires, which could happen by the end of this year.

Bottom line: China Mobile’s new leaders are likely to return more cash to investors and pursue a more aggressive M&A strategy after the company’s current conservative chairman retires.

本周不断传来关於中国移动<0941.HK; CHL.N>董事会和股东们的消息，最新迹象显示中移动董事长王建宙或很快退休，让位给新人，也为公司带来新的思路。最有趣的是，中移动的股东们正借此希望谋求更多红利以及希望公司实行更积极的并购政策。如果新管理层对此买账，这将有助於提振公司表现不佳的股价。国内媒体近日报导称，中移动母公司成立了由九位成员组成的董事会，其中包括该公司董事长王建宙、副董事长奚国华和董事兼总经理李跃，还有另外五名外部董事。将王建宙的两名接班人及如此众多的外部董事纳入董事会的举动也再次说明，中国政府正考虑在王建宙离任後为中移动带来新鲜血液。在王建宙任职期间，中移动强化了其市场领头羊地位，但在扩大业务方面几无建树。嗅到这种变动气息的投资者们突然开始纷纷要求中移动将持有的500亿美元现金返还给投资者，以及寻求收购资产。投资者们过去几年不时提出过类似要求，但多数未能动摇王建宙。王建宙似乎比较保守，认为现金再多也不为过。奚国华和李跃均为工科背景，似乎也不属於那种作风大胆的新一代领导人，但他们肯定也不会比王建宙更保守。一旦王建宙退休，如果中移动开始提高股息派发率且进行一些有趣的全球并购，我不会感到意外。

一句话：中移动的新领导很可能在现任董事长王建宙退休後，向投资者返还更多资金，并实行更积极的并购策略。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Latest Comments Show Why China Mobile’s Conservative Wang Should Retire 王建宙从中国移动退休或许已为期不远

◙ Unicom’s Sputtering 3G: Blame It On the Handsets 联通幡然醒悟 借低价手机扩张3G市场

◙ China Mobile: Where’s the 3G iPhone? 中移动4G网络稳步推进 3G版iPhone或遇阻

Govt to Nat’l Cable Firm: Be Profitable 政府对国家广电公司的安排：商业化

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There’s an interesting report in the domestic media on the ongoing consolidation of China’s fragmented cable TV sector, which seems to indicate that not only is this campaign moving forward on schedule but also that the government is determined to make the new national giant a commercially viable company. The report says that the NDRC, China’s state planner, has rejected a plan from the state agency overseeing the consolidation and asked it to submit a new one. (English article) The major issue is cost: the original plan by the agency overseeing the consolidation called for the government to allocate 1 trillion yuan, or about $150 billion, to complete the project. The NDRC said that price tag was too high, and that rather than becoming a government-controlled entity as the original plan proposed, the new company, to be called China Radio & Television Network, should be a commercially-oriented state-owned enterprise. This sounds to me like the latest signal that central planners intend for this new company to be a serious commercial provider of wire-based broadband services in China, competing directly with the nation’s other major telcos, namely China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL), China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA) and China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU) in providing such services. Considering that this new company will already have wired networks into the homes and offices of hundreds of millions of Chinese consumers and businesses, this new company, which will already supply basic cable TV services to most homes, will have all the  infrastructure and customer contacts it needs in place to quickly become an important new player in the market alongside the 3 major telcos. Of course, the consolidation could still run into trouble and a new, effective management structure will have to be created for this project to be a success. But if that happens, I would look for this new major broadband company to take shape and earn profits as early as late next year, with a possible an IPO as soon as 2013 to help it raise the capital it needs to become an important new player.

Bottom line: China’s plan to create a new national broadband company from its regional cable TV firms appears to be moving forward, with the state intent on making a commercially strong player.

中国媒体近日发表了一篇有意思的报道，透露了广电网络整合的最新进展。报道表明整合正按照日程持续进行，并预示政府决定将这个广电网络这个巨头商业化运作。该报道称，发改委拒绝了之前提交的整合计划，并要求广电方面制定新的计划。拒绝前一计划的主要原因还是费用问题。广电方面要求政府拨款1万亿元来完成整合，但发改委认为费用过于高昂，并且不认同广电提出的国家级有线电视网络公司“中国广播电视网络公司”的事业编国企方案，而是属意纯公司化运作的国有大型文化企业方案。在我看来，这就像是一个最新的信号，表明发改委希望中国广电网络“中国广播电视网络公司”能成为一个商业化的有线网络运营商，直接和提供类似服务的中移动 (0941.HK; CHL.N)、中联通(0762.HK; CHU.N)和中电信(0728.HK; CHA.N)三大运营商竞争。考虑到广电的有线网络已经在成千上万的家庭和办公室入户，为海量的个人用户和企业客户提供基本的有线电视服务，广电在地方上将拥有基础设施和用户之便，成为市场上和三大运营商比肩的新巨头。当然，广电整合仍然可能遇到未知的问题，能否建立一个高效的管理体系将成为成败的关键。一旦整合成功，我预测这个新的宽带公司将最早在明年底就盈利，可能在2013年公开募股，以集资和三大运营商抗衡。

一句话：中国计划将区域有线电视提供商整合为一家大企业，同时希望这家公司成为市场上新的强力参与者。 (翻译：网易）

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Anti-Monopoly Regulator Makes Poor Choice in Chasing China Telecom 中国反垄断初试牛刀 选错对象

◙ Cable Consolidation Moves Closer With New Umbrella Company 中国广播电视网络公司有望近期挂牌 有线网络整合步伐加快

◙ Cable Consolidation Crosses Provincial Lines 中国广电行业跨省并购案