China’s 4G subs top 500M mark
China’s three operators now have more than two million 4G base stations, with 4G subscribers topping 500 million, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

4G users account for nearly 40 per cent of the country’s 1.3 billion connections.

Market leader China Mobile had 376 million 4G users at the end of Q1, while China Telecom had 75 million and China Unicom had 60 million, according to GSMA Intelligence.

Jas Mobile fined $5.6M for forfeiting licence
Thailand’s Jas Mobile, which forfeited its 4G licence after failing to make its first payment in March, has been fined THB200 million ($5.58 million) by the country’s regulator.

The mobile hopeful, the winning bidder in the December auction of 900MHz spectrum, has already lost its THB645 million guarantee. The fine covers the operating expenses for the original auction, the re-auction as well as interest. It is due on 16 June, but Jas can appeal the ruling.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission decided not to revoke the operating licence of its parent company Jasmine International, the Bangkok Post reported.

HK’s SmarTone launches anti-cyberattack software
Hong Kong operator SmarTone released anti-cyberattack software that provides continuous and real-time protection for smartphones against mobile security threats.

The ST Project has on-device artificial intelligence (AI) and a machine learning behavioural engine designed to protect smartphones from known and even unknown threats, the operator said. It is powered by Zimperium, a US-based security and technology company that has invented the world’s first mobile AI intrusion prevention system.

The operator said Hong Kong saw an 86 per cent increase in the number of security issues related to mobile devices in 2015. Globally, more than 87 per cent of the top mobile apps have been hacked.

Users can download ST Project from the App Store or Google Play for a one-month free trial.

SKT unveils ‘T map for Cars’
SK Telecom (SKT) has launched a connected-car service that links a mobile navigation app to an in-vehicle navigation system.

SKT said its ‘T map for Car’ service combines the strength of the two navigation systems to offer more accurate navigation information regardless of vehicle location. The service enables drivers to use T map, the most popular mobile navigation app in Korea, on their in-vehicle infotainment system screens by mirroring their mobile device screens through a USB cable.

T map for Car, unveiled at Busan International Motor Sho, will be available in Kia’s K5 in July and Jaguar Land’s Rover F-Pace in September.

China Mobile deploys Nokia backhaul network
China Mobile has deployed a GPON (gigabit passive optical network) mobile backhaul network from Nokia in Jiangsu and Henan provinces.

Focused on expanding indoor and outdoor coverage in urban areas, China Mobile is investing in new base stations and more than 100,000 LTE small cells, which will be networked using the GPON fibre backhaul technology.

Nokia’s GPON mobile backhaul solution will allow the operator to develop its LTE user base, while at the same time expand its FTTH footprint needed to connect more residential and enterprise users.