Jane Chen / Shanghai Daily news

China United Telecommunications Corp has completed the construction of the country's first 3G mobile telecom network in Tianjin and has started releasing the phone numbers in the city, China Business News reported.
The network, based on an upgraded version of the Code Division Multiple Access 1X standard, has a capacity for 10,000 users, according to China Unicom's Tianjin branch. 
It will enable an Internet access speed of 2MB per second, meeting the initial demand of the network. The service is currently provided in Tianjin's Binghai New Area.
Tianjin Unicom has set up two reception counters, in the Tianjin Development Zone and Heping District, to allocate the numbers, which begin with 133.  It also supplies a Samsung E159 cell phone, the first 3G handset on the China market.
In addition to Tianjin, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are also speeding up the development and construction of their 3G networks, a move described by a China Unicom official as organized by China's telecom authority rather than at the individual initiative of the telecom operators themselves.
In Shanghai, the roll-out is making good progress in terms of technical testing and commercial use, according to Shanghai Unicom. 
The testing network is used for technological development and trials and the commercial network is being developed for commercial use.
The company has conducted trial operations during important international events such as the Chinese Formula One Prix of last September and the 48th World Table Tennis Championships in May.
As for the commercial network, it plans to start the service this summer and spread coverage to the city's downtown and major commercial areas by the year's end.