Major mobile providers call on stricken to use WeChat

China's two major mobile service providers, China Mobile and China Unicom, have recommended that people use the popular instant messaging application WeChat, rather than phone calls or text messages, to communicate with relatives or friends in the quake-hit zone, the 21st Century Business Herald reported on Tuesday.

The provincial branches of the two telecommunications service providers made the request in a notice published on their official Weibo accounts on Saturday morning, some two and a half hours after the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that jolted part of the province.

Both service providers explained that the notices aim to save mobile phone service resources for emergency use, as too many people were calling relatives and friends in the quake-hit area and overloading the service channel.

Several journalists dispatched to the quake zone have said WeChat has proved to be helpful especially when phone calls and text message services were affected.

"The communication difficulty is due to the volume of the service providers' base stations," said an engineer from Huawei, a major telecommunication equipment maker. "Compared to phone channels, 3G networks may seem less crammed."

Li Jianbo, founder of Youyou Mobile and a telecommunications expert, said service providers should allocate the resources at the base stations in accordance with actual demand. "Rural residents are less likely to use 3G networks. More resources should be given to phone calls and texting there."

Special report: 7.0-magnitude earthquake jolts Ya'an, Sichuan