Mobile phone manufacturers were hoping to begin selling 3G mobile phones in China, where, according to a recent survey, over 80 million customers would like to switch to 3G. But it looks like both customers and manufacturers will have to wait until 2008, as the government is preventing the 3G network operators to provide 3G services.

The introduction of 3G in China has been delayed by the government for over a year, while the country's TD-SCDMA standard is to be finalized. Carriers have already set up test networks in several urban areas and are apparently ready to offer full 3G services. But there is nothing to do until the Chinese government grants 3G licenses, and although it is still possible that the government may grant the licenses throughout this year, it seems that - currently - China may actually benefit from the delay. The many delays in the past were due to technical problems with China's TC-SCDMA standard.

This delay would give TD-SCDMA operators the opportunity to eliminate any remaining bugs, thus avoiding major glitches that may occur at the launch and reducing the risk of negative publicity.

China has been delaying the issue of 3G licenses since 2002 and it looks like, for now, Chinese customers may have to wait some more until being able to benefit from high transfer data speeds and video calls on their cell phones. The Chinese government will reach a decision on the 3G licensing schedule somewhere around mid-February.

Several companies may be affected by this change of plans, including Motorola, Sony Ericsson and Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, which currently holds more than 30 percent of the Chinese market.