China's BeiDou system standard ratified by IMO  

北斗系统船舶入网用户逾3万 可近远海位置监控

中国卫星导航系统管理办公室主任、北斗卫星导航系统新闻发言人冉承其21日在南京举行的第五届中国卫星导航学术年会上表示，渔业领域，北斗系统可提供远海及近海船舶的位置监控，北斗短信与手机短信可互联互通，为渔船提供及时精准的气象和海况信息。目前，北斗系统船舶入网用户3万余个，伴随手机用户10万余个。[查看全文]

The International Maritime Organization has ratified the performance standard of a receiver of the shipborne BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), the Ministry of Transport revealed Wednesday.

This is the first BDS to be standard approved by an international organization. It marks the first step for China's home-grown system in its quest to go global, according to the ministry.

The move is key to the application of BDS in the international maritime field and its industrial development, the ministry said.

The first satellite for the BDS plan was launched in 2000. China wants to expand the regional navigation system to global coverage by around 2020.

Also on Wednesday, BDS spokesman Ran Chengqi said at a symposium in Nanjing that China has started the last phase of the BDS development plan, and is expanding the system's market share at home.

As of the end of March, the sale of BDS/GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) modules exceeded two million, Ran said.

Moreover, he said that over 40 million mobile phones with BeiDou positioning function have been put into market, and vehicle-mounted BDS navigators designed for more than 200 automobile types have been on sale.