The three market leading operators in China have separately confirmed that they are discussing the formation of a joint “base station company” that would allow them all to share tower infrastructure.
China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom have not yet reached any agreement regarding the proposed venture. Responding to speculation from the media that they could be planning an infrastructure sharing arrangement, the operators have each confirmed that talks are taking place, although China Telecom’s statement noted that they were at a “preliminary stage”.
The joint venture, noted China Mobile, was aimed at enhancing “the sharing of resources for the development of telecommunications infrastructure and lower operator costs and the costs for developing telecommunications networks”.
The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) seems to be supportive of the initiative, reporting on its website that the joint venture would have a beneficial impact for the environment, the operators and customers.
