No iPhone 5 for China Mobile

Yue Li, the president of China Mobile, confirmed at its Worldwide Developer’s Conference that business issues are holding up agreements with Apple, preventing the latest iPhone from reaching China’s largest cellphone provider’s network.

Apart from business issues, as it seems, the released device as it stands does not function properly on the TD-SCDMA network. China Mobile is reportedly building out a network usable with Apple’s new phone, but it is likely incomplete or unable to withstand the expected tide of iPhone 5 users.

Meanwhile the rival – China Unicom, announced that it has already received 100,000 iPhone 5 orders on its first day of preorder sales. Wireless operator China Telecom has been taking preorders for weeks, and began formal sales of the handset on Sunday, selling 5,000 of the hot device on the very first day. The phone’s ultimate release in China was announced last week, with products shipping on December 14.

The new Apple phone has been available in 47 other countries, including Hong Kong and Japan, since September.