Rumor: China Mobile May Partner with Mobile IM Service

Rumor: China Mobile May Partner with Mobile IM Service "Line"

36kr, 12/27/12

A number of Chinese language tech blogs have reported that China Mobile (NYSE: CHL; 0941.HK) may partner with NHN Japan, the developer of mobile messaging service Line, to combat the loss of SMS and voice revenue faced by the company due to the rapid growth of Tencent's (0700.HK) WeChat (Weixin) mobile messaging application.

WeChat's total number of users is estimated to surpass 300 mln in January 2013.

Editor's Note: Line was launched in mainland China on December 11. China Mobile users can sign up for Line using their China Mobile Fetion mobile IM accounts, as well as through Sina (Nasdaq: SINA) and Beijing-based social networking site operator Renren (NYSE: RENN) accounts. Line allows users to make free VoIP calls to other Line users, in addition to text, image, and video messaging services.

For more background on this topic, please see "NHN Japan Brings "Line" Mobile Messaging Service to China" MD 12/12/12 issue and "Tencent's WeChat User Base to Reach 300 Mln in Early 2013" MD 12/17/12 issue.

Keywords: China Mobile wireless Tencent mobile IM CHL 0700.HK 0941.HK NHN WeChat Line IM

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