failed to materialize, and similar things may happen to those who expect WLL to be the primary technology for local communication in the developing world. In these considerations, the People's Republic of China is a major factor. In fact, mainland China is often held out as the Holy Grail of global marketing for many prod- ucts and technologies, including cellular. As the world's most populous nation, and one whose technological and economic development is managed by a central government, appears to be a huge potential technology market. If the Chinese government commit- Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digitalengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright © 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website. The User Terminal The User Terminal ted to a single technology for developing telecommunications, it would mean hundreds of millions of customers and many years of committed sales. Production and sales at a volume that would satisfy demand in China would reduce the per-unit cost of WLL to the point where it would be affordable in other developing nations as well. Many companies have hoped for, and perhaps even expected, such a commitment. Small WLL test systems have been developed and deployed in China. But no decision has been made, and no contract has been signed. Finding reasons for the actions of Chinese government is a profession all its own. However, these factors should be con- sidered: The government has a distinct ambivalence about Western economic and tech- nological development and fears that it is a destabilizing factor. Political events, such as the worldwide live broadcast of the protest in Tiananmen Square, tend to exacerbate this hesitancy, especially with regard to enhanced communications. In addition, the government strongly prefers internal economic development, and mainland China has a growing capacity to manufacture electronics locally. This would be a reason for delay, since the later the initiative begins