Apple Is Once Again Making Overtures Towards China Mobile
July 31, 2013
Apple CEO Tim Cook has met with China Mobile Chairman Xi Guohua in Beijing to discuss “matters of cooperation.” The talks could pave the way for the world’s largest cellular provider to finally carry the iPhone, according to Reuters.
Cupertino would love to add China Mobile to its list of iPhone carriers. In fact, this almost happened in December, when a deal between the companies appeared imminent.
Now, all attention is focused on the so-called “iPhone 5C,” which could be the phone Apple needs to bring China Mobile into the fold.
The long-rumored budget phone is said to include chips made by Qualcomm that work with TD-LTE. This technology, which China Mobile is said to be testing, is a variant of the fourth-generation Long Term Evolution radio technology, or LTE. Current iPhones don’t work on TD-LTE.
According to Reuters:
Any deal between China Mobile and Apple, combined with the Chinese government issuing 4G licenses later this year, could turn around both companies' fortunes with wider product distribution and faster Internet speeds attracting new smartphone adopters.China Mobile has a customer base of around 700 million. Earlier this week, Cook met with officials of China Telecom, a company that does carry the iPhone in the world's most populous nation. See also: Apple And China Mobile Are Getting Closer To An iPhone Deal, and