InterDigital Inc (IDCC)

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Datang to set up telecom park in Shanghai



BEIJING, Mar 6, 2003 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- The Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co. Ltd. signed an agreement recently with the Shanghai Qingpu Industrial Zone to set up an industrial park there.

Tang Ru'an, chief operating officer of Datang Mobile, said: "It's part of our strategy to accelerate the development of our TD-SCDMA project." The TD-SCDMA (time division synchronous code division multiple access) system developed by Datang mobile is one of three global standards for the third generation of mobile communication.

According to Tang, the park will be a comprehensive one, covering research and development, manufacturing, testing, training and customer services.

"With the park there, we aim to enhance our efficiency and help boost the city's electronics sectors such as the integrated circuit and software industries," Tang said.

Analysts pointed out that Datang badly needs to speed up the commercialization of its TD-SCDMA system.

In January, the company established a joint venture with the Philips Electronics Co. Ltd. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. in Beijing.

The joint venture will produce TD-SCDMA chips and reference designs for the Datang TD-SCDMA mobile standard.

It will also license hardware and software designs to handset manufacturers.

"TD-SCDMA has technical advantages for users, such as greater capacity and spectrum efficiency," said Tang.

Analysts said they expect the government to award the TD-SCDMA system a third generation mobile license later this year or in 2004 as well as to the more mature standards, the United States-based CDMA2000 system and the European WCDMA (wideband CDMA) system.

The two rival systems have already gone into commercial operation in some countries.

Tang predicted that the TD-SCDMA system will enter the market early next year.Copyright 2003 XINHUA NEWS AGENCY.

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