According to reports in local media, following the rejection of five drafts, the sixth draft of the pilot program for the convergence of three networks in China has been approved by the government's leadership team.
The program will reportedly start to collect implementation plans from pilot cities before June 15, 2010, and plans to enforce the move by June 28, 2010.
The pilot program is said to be beneficial for the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television of China and it clarifies that the administration will be responsible for the construction and management of the IPTV integrated broadcasting and control platform, including EPG billing management, Internet access via cable network, data transmission, and IP telephone businesses in China.
The convergence of three networks will cover many sectors, including renovation of cable and telecom networks; manufacturing of highly-integrated chips; content creation; billing and network maintenance software; and telecom equipment. Upstream industries such as the electronic component industry and the optical fiber and cable companies will benefit from the large-scale upgrade and renovation of networks; while equipment makers, including mobile phone makers and Internet TV makers, will all gain profits from the program.
However, neither China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology nor the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television has revealed the details for the pilot program, even though it is planning to go into effect very soon.