Regulators Clear iPhone for Use on China Mobile’s TD-LTE Network

Apple’s satellite iPhone event in Beijing came and went without the announcement of a new distribution agreement with China Mobile. But the long-anticipated deal with China’s largest wireless carrier is clearly in the offing.

On Wednesday, China’s Telecom Equipment Certification Center issued a network-access license for a handset resembling the iPhone that runs on China Mobile’s network. This, just a day after Apple debuted the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, both of which support the TD-LTE wireless bands used by China Mobile.

Now, these back-to-back revelations certainly aren’t hard confirmation of a formal deal with China Mobile, but coming as they do after reports that Apple is preparing to ship iPhones to China Mobile, they suggest that a deal is likely imminent.