China Mobile, the world's largest buyer of SIM cards, has completed work on a third version of its domestic standard for over-the-air downloads of data and programs to SIM cards in its subscriber handsets, sources tells Card Technology's sister publication CT China.

The new version will allow for faster communication with the SIMs to, for example, remotely fix problems with SIM software, add services by expanding the SIM toolkit menus on the cards and even download new applications. The new specification is designed to coincide with the faster network speeds China Mobile is introducing, including 3G service, expected sometime next year.