Google’s spat with Chinese government causes ‘postponement’ of Android phones

You have to love a good clash of legitimate titans, and they don’t get much bigger than Google and China. After deciding to stop censoring its Google.cn results, the Mountain View company of evil-non-doers has stepped up its offensive with the announcement that two Android phones — one from Samsung and one from Motorola — which were slated to make their arrival on China Unicom on Wednesday have now been postponed. We’ll read between the lines and guess that the phones will be “postponed” if China plays nice, or “never gonna happen” if it doesn’t. Google seems intent on demonstrating the full impact of its potential withdrawal from China, and this show of its sway with mobile manufacturers will hardly go unnoticed.

[Thanks, David Casteneta]

Google’s spat with Chinese government causes ‘postponement’ of Android phones originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jan 2010 07:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China Unicom prices iPhone for October 1st launch

While the iPhone got an official announce for China last month, its retail pricing and delivery date have remained a mystery. That’s going to change later today when China Unicom is expected to announce an October 1st launch for Cupertino’s darling. Eight service packages ranging in price from 126 yuan (about $18) to 886 yuan (about $130) per month will be available to Unicom’s 141 million subscribers from a pool of 700 million cellphone toting Chinese. How much will it cost? 5,000 yuan or a steep $733 green retail. Subsidies of about 893 yuan (about $131) to 4,253 yuan (about $623) will be offered for those signing to long-term plans on Unicom’s fledgling 3G network. Looks like somebody’s standard of living is on the rise.

Filed under: Cellphones

China Unicom prices iPhone for October 1st launch originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 03:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone coming to China Unicom in Q4 — it’s official (updated)

And now it’s official: China Unicom has struck a 3-year exclusive deal to finally bring the iPhone to China’s massive subscriber-base potential. The carrier will offer two different “3G iPhones” to its 141 million subscribers and it will buy the phones wholesale from Apple — no revenue sharing deal here kids. Neither Apple nor China Unicom will reveal specs on the phones (WiFi?) or pricing. So that’s it, short and sweet after what feels like years of rumors. But really, unless you live in China and subscribe to China Unicom what else is there to know?

Read — China Unicom announcement
Read — More detail

Filed under: Cellphones

iPhone coming to China Unicom in Q4 — it’s official (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China Unicom denies having bought 5M iPhones

We’d still venture to say that all signs are pointing toward an iPhone launch on China Unicom before too long, but one key element of the launch — Unicom’s upfront buy — is now in question. A spokesman for China’s third-largest carrier (which is an amazingly low rank considering they’ve got about as many subscribers as Verizon and AT&T combined) has denied earlier reports that they’ve stockpiled five million handsets in preparation for launch, saying that negotiations with Apple are still ongoing. We imagine that when you’re dealing with a nine-figure subscriber count, any hardware negotiation is complex, tense, and filled with counteroffers, so there’s no telling how much longer this process could take.

[Via Unwired View]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

China Unicom denies having bought 5M iPhones originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 16 Aug 2009 18:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone facing potential trademark issues in China?

Apple’s on-again, off-again deal with China Unicom to officially bring the iPhone to China may still be up in the air, but it looks like it could now also be facing some trademark issues that could potentially further hold up its release. Apparently, China’s Hanwang Technology owns the trademark for “i-phone” in the country, which could force Apple to make a deal with ‘em before it enters the market (sound familiar?). Interestingly, Apple does actually own an “iPhone” trademark in China, but it apparently only covers computer hardware and software, while Hanwang’s trademark covers mobile phones. According to Hanwang, however, the two aren’t actually in talks just yet, and it’s not saying what it plans to do if Apple decides to go crazy and announce a move into China without its blessing.

[Via mocoNews.net]

Filed under: Cellphones

iPhone facing potential trademark issues in China? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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