MIIT to release 4G licenses by year-end

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) will release fourth generation (4G) telecommunications licenses by the end of this year, Xinhua News Agency reported Saturday, citing an official from the ministry.

The move is expected to accelerate broadband development in China, the biggest telecom market in the world in terms of number of subscribers.

According to the report, the government will also enhance 3G network coverage and service quality, and encourage private capital to enter the telecom market.

The 4G network is expected to give users access to faster Internet speeds, an area in which China has lagged behind other markets.

China's three telecom operators have already laid out their strategies for the development of 4G mobile networks.

In June this year, China Mobile, the country's largest mobile carrier by user base, said that the company has built more than 22,000 4G base stations in 15 cities across China, and plans to set up 200,000 base stations in 100 cities by the end of this year.

Figures from MIIT show that the information consumption market in China was worth 1.7 trillion yuan ($276.86 billion) in 2012, an increase of 29 percent from the previous year, and the market is expected to reach 3.2 trillion yuan by 2015.