Apple Inc. (AAPL) Posts Job For China Mobile Engineering Expert

Updated on

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) may finally have a deal with China Mobile Ltd. (NYSE:CHL) (HKG:941) in its sights. The company has posted a job for an engineering manager with expertise in the carrier’s technology.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) Posts Job For China Mobile Engineering Expert

Apple seeks engineering manager

Bloomberg News spotted the job listing, which seeks a “Carrier Engineering Manager” for China. The manager will work out of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s Beijing office and handle account management for all carriers in the Greater China region with direct reports in both Hong Kong and Beijing.

The person will have to obtain approvals for all of the company’s software and hardware, support carriers with trials, manage technical issues with carriers, and track carrier roadmaps for Apple China. The manager must be bilingual as well, speaking both English and Mandarin.

Clues in Apple’s job listing

Now while on the surface, this seems like a fairly general listing for an engineering manager. However, it’s the fine print that offers the details. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) wants someone who not only knows about GSM / EDGE, FD-LTE and WCDMA, but also TD-LTE and TD-SCDMA—two technologies developed and used by China Mobile Ltd. (NYSE:CHL) (HKG:941).

When will Apple announce a deal?

Analysts have been clamoring for Apple to make a deal with China Mobile for some time. The company has 1.2 billion subscribers, making it the largest mobile carrier in the world’s largest mobile market. Some speculated that a deal would be announced along with the new iPhones in September, but the only new carrier that was announced then was Japan’s largest carrier NTT DoCoMo.

The most recent suggestion on timing for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s launch on China Mobile’s network came from Sifel analysts who suggest that a deal could be announced in November along with the launch of the carrier’s new TD-LTE network, which is expected to be approved for commercial use then.

Leave a Comment