China Mobile gets license for 4G services

China Mobile (CHL.NYSE, 0941.HKG) won state approval on Wednesday to commence its commercial service on China’s 4G network, the largest 4G network in the world, Bloomberg reported. Two smaller domestic carriers also received 4G licenses yesterday from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The approval clears a key hurdle to offering Apple’s (AAPL.NASDAQ) iPhone to China Mobile’s 759 million subscribers. Spending on the 4G network by China Mobile accounted for 52% of its total capital spending this year, which is around US$16.24 billion (RMB99 billion). China Mobile and Apple have also signed a long-awaited deal, The Wall Street Journal reported today, citing anonymous sources.