China Telecom recorded 1.51 million Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) users at the end of the third quarter this year, Chinese media reported on Nov. 3.

China Telecom added 950,000 IPTV users during the first nine months of this year, expanding its IPTV user base to 1.51 million customers as of Sept. 30, according to the Web site Lmtw.com.
In August, China Telecom launched a tender for IPTV terminals. The results of the tender indicated that the company had the equipment to potentially add 350,000 new IPTV users during the remainder of this year, according to the report.

China Telecom's IPTV growth is outpacing its largest rival, China Netcom, which recorded approximately 690,000 IPTV users as of Sept. 30. China Netcom's user base, which accounts for 31 percent of China's 2.2 million IPTV users, is lagging behind due to its recently concluded merger with China Unicom.

China Netcom is yet to announce its detailed plan for the IPTV field, the report said.

China Telecom and China Netcom operate IPTV in China's southern and northern regions, respectively, in collaboration with IPTV license holders. China Netcom will be known as China Unicom in the future, as a result of the merger between the two telecom companies.

Source:INTERFAX-CHINA