China vows neutrality in choosing 3G systems
April 23rd, 2007CHINA will be "technologically neutral" when choosing standards for high-speed wireless services in the world's biggest mobile market by users, Xi Guohua, a vice minister at the Ministry of Information Industry, said yesterday.
China approved the domestically developed time division synchronous code division multiple access, or TD-SCDMA, in January 2006 as a standard for third-generation services. The government has said it is considering two other technologies, wideband CDMA, or WCDMA, and CDMA2000, for 3G, which allows video conferencing and faster downloads of songs on to handsets.
"We will treat WCDMA and CDMA2000 equally," Xi said at the Boao Forum held in southern China's Hainan Island. "It has nothing to do with supporting a locally developed standard."
Telecommunication equipment makers such as Ericsson AB are awaiting China's issuance of 3G licenses to spur spending on networks, Bloomberg News reported. The government has said 3G services will be available for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, without giving a more detailed time frame or saying which other standards it will adopt.
No timetable
Xi reiterated that the government doesn't have a specific timetable. The issuance of 3G licenses isn't dependent on the outcome of a trial of TD-SCDMA being carried out by China Mobile Communications Corp, Xi said.
China will consider the maturity of the technology and how starting 3G services will affect the competitiveness of the domestic telecommunications market, Xi said. The government is hastening plans to reorganize the industry, he said.
Xi's comments come after European Union Media Commissioner Viviane Reding on April 12 cited the same pledge by China's Information Industry Minister Wang Xudong to be "technologically neutral" and to issue more than one 3G license.
Most 3G networks in Europe are based on WCDMA.
Compensation disputes on the rise at work
April 20th, 2007DISPUTES over compensation for terminations of work contracts are on the rise, according to the Shanghai Labor and Social Security Bureau in its quarterly report released yesterday.
The arbitration division received 1,400 disputes about work contract termination during the first quarter of this year. Of those, about 75 percent were over compensation.
"Nowadays most employees choose to get compensation when it is illegal for the company to terminate a contract instead of insisting to stay in the company," said Sui Wei, vice director of the bureau's arbitration division.
"Most of the employees involved in these kinds of disputes are between the age of 18 and 40, and it has become a trend to prefer compensation," Sui said.
Most disputes occur in private enterprises.
Other main causes of disputes are wage and insurance benefits, according to the report.
"But the number of disputes over arrears of wages has decreased by about 30 percent," Sui said.
The number of dispute applications that can be handled by arbitration has been increased, Sui said.
Arroyo to sign US$2b deals on China visit
April 20th, 2007PHILIPPINEP President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was due to depart for a shortened visit to China today to conclude deals amounting to US$2 billion worth of Chinese investment, The Associated Press reported.
The visit, originally set for five days, was cut short to 12 hours after Arroyo's husband underwent open heart surgery April 9. He was expected to be released from a hospital tomorrow, when Arroyo returns to Manila.
Apart from signing and approving several investment agreements, Arroyo was scheduled to take part in the weekend Boao Forum for Asia meeting of top government officials and business leaders, presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said.
Microsoft Corp Chairman Bill Gates, Bangladeshi Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus and Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz also were expected to attend the forum in southern Hainan province, Bunye said.
He said Arroyo "brings to the forum her expertise and strong grasp of regional and geopolitical matters in her capacity as president and as chair of ASEAN," the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Arroyo has said earlier the investments in the Philippines will be funded by the Chinese government. She did not elaborate. Her visit to China in 2004 yielded US$1.2 billion in combined investment commitments and soft loans.
McDonald's China To Set Up 40 Trade Unions In East China
April 19th, 2007According to the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, McDonald's China has promised to establish trade union branches in its 40 restaurants in Zhejiang province this year.
An ACFTU spokesman told local media that Zong Hao, central region human resources director with McDonald's China, made the remarks when visiting the Zhejiang Federation of Trade Unions.
The move would boost the development of labor relations, upgrade the fast food giant's social image in China and help it fulfill its social responsibilities, said Chen Dingxin, ZFTU vice chairman. Chen said he hoped McDonald's China would lose no time in fulfilling its promise in accordance with China's regulations on trade unions.
Earlier this month, Kong Xianghong, vice chairman of the Guangdong Trade Unions Federation, said McDonald's had promised to set up trade union branches in the southern Guangdong province before July this year. But a spokesman for McDonald's in Guangdong refused to confirm Kong's claim and would not comment to local media.
McDonald's, KFC and Pizza Hut have been criticized for paying their part-time employees in Guangzhou just RMB4 per hour, up to 40% less than the city's statutory minimum wage of RMB7.5. However subsequent government inspections found no problems with the foreign fast food operations.
How Do I Hire an IT Consultant?
April 18th, 2007Technology changes quickly. When choosing a consultant try the following:
Look for a recent, relevant work record.
Contact references who have first-hand experience of the consultant.
Check with businesses similar to yours, professional organizations, the local Better Business Bureau or chamber of commerce, or even your accountant or attorney.
Some vendors, including Microsoft, IBM and Sun, offer official certification programs that keep consultants current on new technology. You should also ask whether a consultant belongs to a recognized professional organization such as Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
Western China Favors Green Investment
April 17th, 2007Officials in northwest China's Shaanxi Province are calling for more green investment and urging local governments not to sacrifice the environment on the altar of economic growth.
Yuan Chunqing, governor of Shaanxi Province, says that local governments in northern Shaanxi should carefully assess the environmental impact of investments, especially energy exploration projects, and should not promote those which threaten the environment. Yuan made the remark at the 11th Investment and Trade Forum for Cooperation between East and West China which kicked off on April 6 in Xi'an. Domestic investors have signed contracts worth nearly RMB172 billion up 36.7% from the previous year, at the forum.
According to Yuan, the underdeveloped western regions should be on the watch for industries seeking to transfer pollution from the east.
Waste water processing, healthy coal mine exploitation and other environmentally friendly programs were also the focus of the forum. Local media report that Climate Change Capital from Britain are going to invest US$500 million in the next five years into China's clean resource utilization and the company says that western China's actions in energy conservation has brought them great business opportunities.