Chinese telecom operator China Unicom, which currently is an official reseller of the Apple iPhone, has launched its self-developed smartphone operating system, Wophone, which the company claims to be the first smart terminal operating system with independent intellectual property rights in China.

Linux Foundation has announced that the Chinese telecom operator China Mobile has recently become a formal member and the company is Linux Foundation's first Chinese enterprise-level member.

The O1, China's first 3G Ophone, formally launched by Lenovo in Beijing this week.

Mobile Market, China Mobile's online mobile phone applications store for its OPhone and other devices, has published a notice stating that it started to charge for software and game products downloaded from its website from November 1, 2009.

Chinese telecom operator China Mobile has officially started the sales of its Ophone handsets in Shanghai and launched a promotional activity at the same time.

Days after news of rival China Unicom's non-exclusive iPhone deal with Apple, Chinese telecom operator China Mobile formally launched its Ophone platform and Ophone handsets today.

During China Telecom's recent meeting for the placement of 3G handset orders, Xiao Chaojun, vice president of Beijing Tianyu Communication Equipment, positioned the company's product lines into three tiers, with the aim of becoming one of the top five handset makers in the world within three years.

China Mobile has inked deals with ten Chinese and overseas mobile phone manufacturers to develop Ophone, a mobile phone product based on China Mobile's Open Mobile System.

According to reports in Taiwanese local media, Chinese telecommunications operator China Unicom will launch Uphone, a smartphone product based on Google's Android platform, in late June or July 2009.

With rumors that China Unicom might be soon ink a formal deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to China, Chinese telecommunications rival China Mobile is hoping its new OPhone will keep the company competitive.