The world's leading telecom giant Ericsson and Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT) will jointly establish a digital communication technology research center to conduct study on a third generation mobile telecommunications system.

BIT will provide the necessary laboratory space, basic research equipment and working platform for the project, while some of its senior professors and associate professors will participate in the research.

Ericsson will finance the research while offering key equipment and necessary modern telecommunications resources, according to an agreement signed in Beijing on Monday.

BIT and Ericsson initiated their cooperation in 1997. BIT President Kuang Jingming said he believes that the new project will lay a solid foundation for the study of key technology used in digital mobile communication.

Jan Uddenfeldt, senior vice-president of Ericsson, viewed the cooperation as a show of Ericsson's long-term commitment to China.

As a major telecommunications service and equipment provider, Ericsson has set up 23 representative offices and eight joint ventures in China, with more than 3,800 employees. (Xinhua)