The service will be available in Korea starting on April 8, 2002 and in China staring in July 2002.

SK Telecom announced the launch of a SIM Card-based (Subscriber Information Module Card) GSM-CDMA inter-standard automatic roaming service for Chinese GSM cellular service subscribers who visit Korea, starting on April 8, 2002.

Bang Hyung Lee, Head of Marketing Business Divisional Group of SK Telecom, and LuXiangDong, Vice-President of China Mobile, agreed to launch the SIM Card-based roaming service for more than 105 million Chinese GSM cellular service subscribers. At 09:00 a.m. on March 8th, 2002, they had the opening ceremony of GSM-CDMA inter-standard automatic roaming service in Conference Room of SK Telecom Headquarter Office.

As a result, China Mobile?s cellular subscribers who visit Korea, can use the same cellular phone number used in China by inserting their own SIM cards to SIM card insertion-typed CDMA cellular handset rented from SK Telecom Roaming Booths in Incheon and Kimhae International Airports. The rental fee of a handset is 1,300 Korean won per day and the roaming service call fee is 100 won per 10 seconds.

In addition, the two companies agreed to launch the GSM-CDMA inter-standard automatic roaming service for SK Telecom?s cellular subscribers (011 and 017) who visit China, starting in July of this year. The subscribers can also use the same cellular phone number used in Korea by inserting their own SIM cards in GSM cellular handsets. The SIM cards carry the subscribers? original cellular phone number used in their country.

In spite of the fact that two different mobile communication network system (GSM and CDMA) existed in Korea and China, this roaming service allows users to make cellular phone calls with their original cellular phone number in both Korea and China.