The year 2006 will become the beginning year of the commercial usage of the 3G (third generation mobile) in China, according to a report by the Development Research Center of the State Council of China.

The report quoted Chinese government as saying the conditions for 3G is mature. China''s mobile telecommunication business has reached a certain scale. TD-SCDMA started big scale commercial test. Major telecommunication operators began preparation for 3G. The report thus predicted the licence for 3G will be issued in the second half of this year, although the exact date is uncertain.

The report predicted, with the rapid economic growth, telecommunication service will keep the growth momentum and cost will be higher than the previous year. If the licence of 3G is issued by year end, investment increase will be higher. (People''s Daily Online)