In a bid to gain an upper hand in China's impending third-generation telecommunications era, China Telecom Co., the country's largest telecom operator, is holding talks for a 3G phone purchase deal worth nearly 1 billion yuan (US$121 million), today's Beijing Morning Post reported.
The deal will probably be inked as early as August, the report said, citing sources close to the matter.
China Telecom formed a special planning team for 3G business in February, grouping more than 10 experienced telecom experts to contribute to the company's strategy for 3G business as well as to its technology negotiations in that area.

According to this strategy, the primary step for the company is to purchase low-price 3G phones based on WCDMA technology (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access), one of the existing three widely acknowledged 3G standards.
China Telecom is in talks with some six phone makers for the deal, including the brands Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, NEC and Huawei, and will choose two or three for long term cooperation.
The first purchase deal will be for between 500,000 and 1 million phones, which are priced below 1,000 yuan each.
According to close sources, China Telecom had planned to close the first deal in May but delayed it because of technological problems.
The company's strategic team is in talks with the phone makers concerning technology standards.