Leading Chinese telecom equipment provider ZTE announced this week that it has signed a 3G handsets supply agreement with Hutchison 3G, the world's leading 3G operator.

The first batch of ZTE and Hutchison 3G co-branded WCDMA handsets have been shipped to Britain and will be launched into the market for Christmas, said ZTE in a press release.

ZTE has been working closely with Hutchison 3G for one year to develop the handsets and reach the contract, said sources with the company.

"This is an important contract for ZTE, " said He Shiyou, senior vice president of ZTE and general manager of the company's handset division.

According to He, ZTE spends 10 percent of its revenue on research and development every year to compete with the best companies in the field.

ZTE's 3G terminals have been delivered in developed European and Asian markets including Italy and Taiwan. More than 10 million ZTE handsets were sold worldwide in 2004.

Hutchison 3G operates 3G services in nine countries and has over 10 million 3G customers.

Source: Xinhua