China’s homegrown mobile phone makers have been striving to woo customers amid ferocious competition during the National Day holidays, one of the country’s biggest shopping periods of the year.

Konka Telecommunications, one of the country’s largest domestic handset makers, has been sending out multi-million yuan gifts for consumers to promote its sales. Each consumer would receive a gift worth nearly 100 yuan (US$12) such as a wireless sound box, and could receive a gold handset worth 5,000 yuan when later lots are drawn, the Shenzhen-based company said in advertisements posted throughout the city.

“We’re not simply trying to cash in,” said Liu Fengxi, marketing manager of Konka Telecommunications. “We want to take the opportunity of the holidays to strengthen our foothold in future competition.”

According to Liu, the company is focusing on five latest models designed for different consumer demands. Konka’s A66, for example, features a standby time of up to 500 hours, while its S600 is a color-screen phone for high-end users.

TCL Communications, recently listed in Hong Kong, has also been promoting its debut models for different consumer groups. Its Shengdian series was specifically designed for business use and the Mobo series was targeting trendy women, a marketing executive said.

TCL also cut the price of a color-screen model with built-in camera to 700 yuan.

(Shenzhen Daily October 11, 2004)