BEIJING, Dec. 10 (InfoChina) – China plans to study the mode for reforming telecom operators with regard to their full range of business in 2008, said Ma Kai, director of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), on December 9, quoted by news.ccidnet.com.

      Ma’s remark is perceived as an indication that the Chinese government has put issuance of mobile service licenses on its work agenda.

      Earlier, Xi Guohua, vice minister of information industry, said China would issue licenses for full business as early as possible. Following his speech, China’s largest mobile operator China Mobile Ltd. (0941.HK; CHL.NYSE) said at its roadshow in Europe that the company will get a fixed-line license and undertake full-range business.

According to a source of NDRC quoted by Beijing News, the so-called full-business reform means authorizing telecom operators to run fixed-line telecom services and mobile telecom services simultaneously. That is to say, the fixed-line operators can expand their business from internet and fixed phone to mobile communication.

China has six telecom operators, including China Mobile, China Unicom Ltd. (0762.HK; CHU.NYSE), China Telecom Ltd. (0728.HK; CHA.NYSE), China Netcom Ltd. (0906.HK; CN.NYSE), China Tietong and China Satcom. (Edited by Li Xiaoyu, )