China has issued licenses to six mobile phone manufacturers allowing their handsets to access the locally developed TD-SCDMA network, according to a report in the Beijing Morning News today. The six companies include four domestic and two South Korean companies; Lenovo, ZTE, Hisense Electric, LG Electronics, Samsung and Guangzhou New Postcom Equipment. The paper added that local manufacturer ZTE also received a seventh license for a mobile datacard.

The issue of TD-SCDMA licenses to the companies could potentially indicate that they will be one of the first in line to supply phones for any future commercial network. China is currently trialling TD-SCDMA as a 3G technology in ten cities, including Beijing. The Chinese government is yet to award 3G mobile phone licenses to the country’s operators. TD-SCDMA and W-CDMA technology are tipped by analysts to be the most likely standards used in the future commercial rollout of 3G services in the country.