China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) is set to issue licences for TD-LTE 4G technology to the country’s three main mobile operators – China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom – in a move that will bolster the position of the technology in the world’s most populous market.

According to Marbridge Daily, while operators will be able to build networks using the more widely used LTE FDD, in order to do so they will need to apply to MIIT for a separate licence – adding an additional layer of complexity to the process.

While TD-LTE is gaining traction internationally, it has seen a significant input from China’s telecoms industry during its development. China Mobile in particular has been a vocal proponent, conducting wide-ranging pilots of the technology, but it has yet to launch commercial services due to the current licensing statement.

Earlier this year, it was reported that the Chinese authorities are set to issue 4G licences later this year.