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Last year some 2 million mobile devices installed with Microsoft operating systems were shipped to China which worked out to about 10 percent of the companys global total.

The timing of 3G's launch is still a mystery but some analysts are expecting it to be delayed until at least the second half of this year, once the Olympics have concluded.

This dovetails rather neatly with yesterdays launch of the internet-friendlier Windows Mobile version 6.1 which should greatly assist in Microsoft increasing its share of any eventual 3G market in China.

Overall, the size of China's mobile phone market is expected to reach more than 323 million units in 2011, according to Beijing-based research firm Analysys International, compared to just over 149 million units in 2007.