aimarraul
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2008
- Messages
- 2,778
- Reaction score
- 0
India's security concerns mask commercial reasons: Chinese telecom firms
English.news.cn 2010-05-06 20:56:51 FeedbackPrintRSS
NEW DELHI, May 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese telecom companies operating in India told Xinhua there is no justification for that country's security concerns about their equipment and the current de facto restrictions smell more of commercial fears.
During the past five months, purchasing contracts for Chinese telecom equipment from major Indian operators have been turned down by the Indian Department of Telecom (DoT), citing security concerns alleged by the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs.
And the purchase of Western companies' equipment in the same contracts had all been cleared.
Even though DoT said there was no ban on Chinese equipment, the rejections suggest a de facto security ban is in place. Chinese telecom majors Huawei and ZTE said they had no new purchase contracts for the first four months of 2010 due to the security check. They never had any formal documents from the Indian government informing them on the issue and only learned about it from Indian telecom operators.
They told Xinhua the so-called "security concerns" were unjustified for at least three reasons:
First, Chinese telecom companies were using the same technical standards as Western telecom companies. Therefore, the fundamental structures of the equipment were the same. Technical checks on Chinese equipment could not have different results to justify DoT's decision.
Second, Chinese telecom equipment had passed technical tests of telecom companies in Britain, Germany and France, where the checks were more strict, and had been serving telecom markets globally. The equipment provided for the Indian market was the same as that provided to Western markets. There was no reason Chinese telecom equipment did not pass checks in India when they had passed in the technically more advanced countries.
Third, Chinese telecom equipment had been used widely in India's wireless networks for the past five years and demonstrated no security problems.
Sources in the telecom industry said India did not currently have a clear guidance for how to proceed with security checks and no technical capability. It would take two years to establish that capability.
Chinese companies also complained the security clearance was a de facto discrimination. They said Indian telecom operators were asked to hand in separately the application for Chinese equipment and the others.
"The so-called security concerns are only excuses," said an industry spokesperson. "The restriction period happens to be the same with the time India auctions its 3G spectrum."
The auction, which has been delayed from February, will end in May this year and will be followed by the first batch of 3G equipment purchases from the operators with 3G licenses. The first purchase will define the market shares for at least the next three years. In a market as large as India's, the competition from major telecom equipment suppliers is fierce.
Without a security clearance, the Chinese companies, which offer 30 percent cheaper equipment and faster service than their Western competitors, will be left out of the 3G purchase. The big Western providers will be the biggest winners.
In addition, middle and small Indian telecom operators and Indian consumers will have to bear higher costs without Chinese telecom equipment. Already there are delays in project launches among Indian operators.
The 10,000 Indian jobs created by investment by Chinese telecom companies will also be at stake. It will further downgrade the image of Indian investment environment.
Huawei and ZTE said they had been fully cooperative with the security checks and had attempted to contact Indian officials over the issue, suggesting an independent security check from a third party. Only the Prime Minister's Office had agreed to meet Huawei this week after meeting requests were sent to seven Indian government departments, including DoT and MHA.
English.news.cn 2010-05-06 20:56:51 FeedbackPrintRSS
NEW DELHI, May 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese telecom companies operating in India told Xinhua there is no justification for that country's security concerns about their equipment and the current de facto restrictions smell more of commercial fears.
During the past five months, purchasing contracts for Chinese telecom equipment from major Indian operators have been turned down by the Indian Department of Telecom (DoT), citing security concerns alleged by the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs.
And the purchase of Western companies' equipment in the same contracts had all been cleared.
Even though DoT said there was no ban on Chinese equipment, the rejections suggest a de facto security ban is in place. Chinese telecom majors Huawei and ZTE said they had no new purchase contracts for the first four months of 2010 due to the security check. They never had any formal documents from the Indian government informing them on the issue and only learned about it from Indian telecom operators.
They told Xinhua the so-called "security concerns" were unjustified for at least three reasons:
First, Chinese telecom companies were using the same technical standards as Western telecom companies. Therefore, the fundamental structures of the equipment were the same. Technical checks on Chinese equipment could not have different results to justify DoT's decision.
Second, Chinese telecom equipment had passed technical tests of telecom companies in Britain, Germany and France, where the checks were more strict, and had been serving telecom markets globally. The equipment provided for the Indian market was the same as that provided to Western markets. There was no reason Chinese telecom equipment did not pass checks in India when they had passed in the technically more advanced countries.
Third, Chinese telecom equipment had been used widely in India's wireless networks for the past five years and demonstrated no security problems.
Sources in the telecom industry said India did not currently have a clear guidance for how to proceed with security checks and no technical capability. It would take two years to establish that capability.
Chinese companies also complained the security clearance was a de facto discrimination. They said Indian telecom operators were asked to hand in separately the application for Chinese equipment and the others.
"The so-called security concerns are only excuses," said an industry spokesperson. "The restriction period happens to be the same with the time India auctions its 3G spectrum."
The auction, which has been delayed from February, will end in May this year and will be followed by the first batch of 3G equipment purchases from the operators with 3G licenses. The first purchase will define the market shares for at least the next three years. In a market as large as India's, the competition from major telecom equipment suppliers is fierce.
Without a security clearance, the Chinese companies, which offer 30 percent cheaper equipment and faster service than their Western competitors, will be left out of the 3G purchase. The big Western providers will be the biggest winners.
In addition, middle and small Indian telecom operators and Indian consumers will have to bear higher costs without Chinese telecom equipment. Already there are delays in project launches among Indian operators.
The 10,000 Indian jobs created by investment by Chinese telecom companies will also be at stake. It will further downgrade the image of Indian investment environment.
Huawei and ZTE said they had been fully cooperative with the security checks and had attempted to contact Indian officials over the issue, suggesting an independent security check from a third party. Only the Prime Minister's Office had agreed to meet Huawei this week after meeting requests were sent to seven Indian government departments, including DoT and MHA.
They are thinking for the first time about the Indian operators......lol Money makes you even eat poooh..... chinese good at that 
