Samsung Electronics and China Mobile discussed ways to strengthen their cooperation in the mobile telecommunication sector when the Chinese firm’s chairman visited the Korean company on Friday, sources said.

Shin Jong-kyun, president of Samsung Electronics’ mobile unit, met China Mobile chairman and CEO Xi Guohua at the Korean firm’s office in Suwon, south of Seoul, according to the sources.

Samsung declined to confirm whether Samsung’s heir apparent Lee Jay-yong joined the Shin-Xi meeting.

The sources said Shin and Xi apparently discussed measures to bolster partnership between the world’s largest mobile manufacturer and China’s major mobile carrier before the official launch of the Chinese firm’s fourth-generation wireless network services in China.

Market observers speculated that they might have discussed the LTE-TDD (a mode of the common LTE standard), for which the Chinese mobile service provider recently received its state approval, and the supply of Samsung’s 4G smartphones on the network.

China Mobile currently has 76 million subscribers and is one of Samsung’s major global partners. Samsung is the largest smartphone brand in China with a 21 percent market share.

The Chinese firm is trying to expand its business partnership with global smartphone makers and mobile network companies before it begins the 4G network services in earnest from around the middle of this month.

The California-based Apple has reportedly inked a deal with China Mobile to sell its iPhones through the China’s largest mobile service provider.

It is said that Apple’s iPhone 5S and 5C will go on sale from Dec. 18, when the Chinese mobile carrier holds a launch event for the LTE-TDD network in Guangzhou.

Xi’s visit to Samsung follows his separate meetings with top executives of the Korea’s two major mobile network service providers, SK Telecom on Thursday, and KT on Wednesday.

In a meeting with SK Telecom CEO Ha Sung-min, the Chinese chairman discussed an array of issues including Long Term Evolution roaming and VoLTE services between the two nations.

Xi also met KT’s acting chairman Pyo Hyun-myung and NTT ToCoMo president Kaoru Kato in Seoul on their three-way cooperation.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)