Chinese telecommunications on the threshold of convergence: Contexts, possibilities, and limitations of forging a domestic demand-based growth model

Offering a historical analysis of the interconnections between China's telecom policies and industrial development over the past three decades, this paper examines what has recently changed since the promulgation of a domestic-based economic growth model. It argues that the ambitious 3G network buildup underpins the state's broader industrial policy to build Chinese competencies in telecommunications manufacturing—through the creation and leveraging of domestic demand. Some progress has been achieved in expanding market share and in re-organizing the supply chain across the network equipment, handset, and wireless applications markets, but these policies have yet to fully transform China's position in global competition.

► Historical interconnections between telecom policies and industrial development are examined.
► Differences in industrial policies between the 2G and 3G eras are examined.
► It is explained why telecom operators are nodal points in the 3G industrial scheme.