Chinese operators may build hybrid 3G networks

Research firm warns against move to combine 3G technology with China's homegrown standard -Sumner Lemon, IDG News Service

Chinese telecommunication operators will likely build 3G (third-generation) mobile networks that combine one of the main 3G technologies with China's homegrown standard, a market research firm said Thursday, warning against the move.

"Full hybrid network establishment is not a viable model for network evolution," Norson (Hong Kong) Information Technology, said in a research note. "The most efficient way for operators to build nationwide 3G networks will be to choose one dominant standard and relegate any other standards to supporting roles."

Backed by the Chinese government, Chinese companies have invested heavily in recent years to develop TD-SCDMA (time division synchronous code division multiple access) as an alternative to the two 3G technologies widely deployed by operators around the world: W-CDMA (wideband CDMA) and CDMA2000 EV-DO (evolution data optimized).

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