By 2012, more than 12 million users in China will be using 3G technologies, which was recently launched prior to the Beijing Olympic Games, a study by EJL Wireless Research predicts.

Government figures indicate that there are currently more than 600 million mobile phone users in China. However, it is still unclear how many of those are using 3G technologies, Lenta.ru reported Monday.

Three years ago, the number of mobile phone users was at 400 million, and by mid-2007, the number had increased by a hundred million.

For its 3G network, China uses TD-SCDMA (Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access), a variant of CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access). The system was designed so that paying patent fees to foreign companies could be avoided, Lenta.ru reported.

Only 13 percent of handsets have been ordered through foreign suppliers. China hopes that the TD-SCDMA standard “will spread beyond its borders,” according to The (UK) Register on Sunday. However, not many manufacturers are producing data cards that comply with this standard.

The Chinese government is anticipating the future of TD-SCDMA handsets, hoping that their mass production might decrease the prices, which could put them in competition with other 3G technologies, according to The Register on Sunday.

Huawei, the major Chinese telecommunications and network provider, has obtained less than 1 percent of the contracts.