He also suggested that operators could tap the domestic stock market for investment, rather than - as China Mobile and China Unicom have done - resorting to the Hong Kong bourse for a listing.

BBC: A Chinese man makes a mobile phone

While Apple already has deals with two Chinese mobile operators - China Unicom and China Telecom - it is yet to strike a partnership with China Mobile, the biggest operator in the world in terms of subscriber volume.

BBC: China mobile users warned about large botnet threat

Future earnings growth for China Mobile and its smaller rival Unicom could come from the eventual arrival of next-generation mobile telephony which will offer speedier internet access and better video streaming.

BBC: Budget users rein in China Mobile

China Unicom - which has just launched a new nationwide mobile service using the CDMA technology popular with US and South Korean networks, if almost nowhere else - already has fixed-line operations.

BBC: A Chinese man makes a mobile phone

The three flavors are known as 802w, 802t and 802d, each heading to China Unicom (WCDMA), China Mobile (TD-SCDMA) and China Telecom (CDMA), respectively.

ENGADGET

But the LePhone competes on the same China Unicom shop shelf space as the Apple iPhone, and sales for both smartphones have not taken off due to consumers shunning China Unicom for a restrictive two-year 3G contracts and perceived better network coverage by larger China Mobile.

FORBES: Lenovo Dreams Of Markets Beyond China

China Mobile and Unicom compete nationally, but the government has licensed only two operators, believing that the cut-throat competition of markets such as Hong Kong's impedes network development.

ECONOMIST: Life is getting harder for China's phone companies