(HAN CHUANHAO)

A bus seat advertises availability of China Mobile's fourth-generation (4G) mobile network access in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

China is expected to start licensing telecom operators to offer services on its 4G mobile phone network within 2013, Minister of Industry and Information Technology Miao Wei said on March 5.

China Mobile, the country's largest mobile operator, employs time division long-term evolution technology, one of two international standards, for its 4G network. Its maximum Internet speed is up to 10 times faster than 3G.

The company started commercial trials of 4G services across Hangzhou and Wenzhou cities in Zhejiang in early February.