China Mobile at risk of losing users: CTR

China Telecom is also likely to outperform China Unicom in promoting its 3G business, the research firm found.

Presently, China Mobile has a 75 per cent share of the 2G market, with China Telecom on 15 per cent and China Unicom 10 per cent.

However, when asked which 3G services they preferred, only 59 per cent of consumers named China Mobile, suggesting that the company will maintain its dominance but potentially lose some customers. Twenty-one per cent of respondents said they were still uncertain.

The likely beneficiary would be China Telecom. Eleven per cent of China Mobile users surveyed by CTR said they preferred China Telecom’s 3G offer, compared with just four per cent who said they preferred China Unicom.

China Mobile looks likely to retain the bulk of its customers, as 64 per cent of its users said they preferred the operator’s 3G service.

Only 22 per cent of Chinese mobile users say they are loyal to a certain operator, compared to 42 per cent worldwide. Thirty-four per cent of users are ‘seekers’ who look for better choices as they are not completely satisfied with the service from their current operator.

Michael Zhan, research director of CTR, commented: “Users and potential users see that 3G represents fashionable and innovative high technology, and it would enrich their experience through its multimedia functions. But there is still a long way to go. Operators need to do more in educating the mass public about the advantages of shifting from 2G to 3G; they need to make the price more competitive and enhance and widen the technology network coverage ”

The research conducted through telephone interview covered 1,909 random sample of mobile phone users across 10 major cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.