Appended to the rumors that China Mobile (CHL) may start selling Apple's iPhone handset in China, Wang Jianzhou, chairman and CEO of China Mobile, now says that as a fashionable product, iPhone is not the only choice for Chinese consumers.

Quoted by various local media, Wang says that the negotiation between China Mobile and Apple is still underway, but the two sides have not reached any agreement.

Wang's current statement forms a big contrast with the former situation. In June 2008, he said that the biggest barrier for China Mobile's introduction of iPhone into China had been tackled, which was taken as a sign that the two sides had reached an agreement over a revenue-sharing model. In addition, only days before the week-long National Day holiday, media reports speculated China Mobile might sell the iPhone in China on the condition that Apple could make a customized iPhone product without the 3G or Wi-Fi function for the Chinese market.

Apart from Wang's comment on China Mobile's cooperation with Apple, the company announced plans to cooperate with Samsung to promote Samsung's i908E handset in China on the eve of the 2008 Summer Davos forum in Tianjin on September 27, 2008. The i908E, which was launched on the same day when Apple launched its iPhone 3G, is a customized model which incorporates many of China Mobile's popular services, including Monternet, 139 email box and Fetion.

Xu Da, general manager of China Mobile's marketing division, says that China Mobile will continue its cooperation with Samsung, and with other manufacturers to produce customized mobile phones in the future.