editorialMade in ChinaOur cover story looks at the reorganization of China's rapidly developing telecommunications industry, a move designed to promote efficiencies and stimulate domestic competition. Many view it as the groundwork necessary to prepare for China's commitments to open its telecommunications market to foreign competition and investment upon its accession to the World Trade Organization-an open future, frankly, that's hard to picture.China sealed itself off from the rest of the world and still "protects" its inhabitants by filtering and restricting information. Communications networks are thriving because most of the world wants better, faster, cheaper access to others and to information-access still heavily controlled in China. Soon the country will allow multinational carriers and services into its market, yet still wants to restrict the flow of communications and information. How will this work? I had the opportunity to visit China last summer. In stifling humidity, I traveled from bustling Hong Kong to the southern city of Shenzhen on a doubledecker bus. I got my tourist visa stamped, and I met with a handful of high-tech companies. Nestled in sterile office buildings, many with unused air conditioning, were fledging fiber-optic companies working feverishly to develop and sell optical components to the domestic manufacturers that supply the nation's carriers. Such system components largely are supplied today by foreign manufacturers. A few companies were located in the state-level authorities' high-tech development zone, earning the opportunity (if approved) to take advantage of preferential policies; others were housed in industrial parks. All sensed a major market opportunity-domestically. Over tea, the principals discussed WDM, 2.5- and 10-Gbit/sec transmission systems, and a host of optical components such as thin-film filters and couplers. But primarily, they wanted information-to find out what was being developed in foreign markets, what was selling, and what would sell, particularly in North America. Next, I flew to Wuhan, a city located on the Yangtze River a few hours north of the Three Gorges in central China. In Wuhan, I met with representatives of several companies-enterprises associated with the Wuhan Research Institute, fiber and cable manufacturer Yangtze Optical Fiber (known as Changfei in China), and the state-level government's administrative committee for the Wuhan East Lake Hi-tech Development Zone. As this month's cover story demonstrates, China has built world-class networks based largely on equipment and technology supplied by foreign companies, many with domestic partners. As foreign network service providers prepare to navigate China's maze of government regulations and hard-to-pin-down business practices, it may be difficult to determine just how "open" the market will be as China attempts to catch up with the rest of the world. Kathleen Richards Senior Editor |