Beijing will merge the state-owned telecom equipment makers China Datang and Potevio by the end of 2010, state media reported. The combined firm will be China’s third-largest telecom manufacturer, behind Huawei and ZTE. Authorities had mulled the prospect of a merger when the two were struggling in 2007, but abandoned plans when both firms started seeing black. Officials hinted that China’s lagging 3G market may be a factor. "The government has cleared the merger as it wants to reduce the number of State-owned enterprises and boost the development of TD-SCDMA, the home-grown 3G standard," said one official.
Categories