China Mobile Ltd will no longer require companies such as Tom Online Inc and Sina Corp to provide free monthlong trials to subscribers of short messaging services on handsets as the world's biggest mobile carrier by users tries to raise revenue from non-voice services.

The free SMS trials will end on Sunday.

China Mobile is lifting the free-trial requirement because it could hamper growth in SMS sales, which increased 30 percent from a year earlier. The Beijing-based carrier imposed the trials on providers in July as part of government-mandated rules that make it harder to market ring tones, games and other services to handset users. Shares of Tom Online, Sina and other companies, which provide the services, plunged after the July announcement.

China Mobile is trying to protect this portion of revenue because its non-voice business is becoming more and more important. The free trials were definitely having an impact on revenue growth.

Shares of China Mobile fell 1.9 percent on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Sep 5 to close at HK$51.65 (US$6.62). The stock has risen 41 percent this year, compared with a 16 percent gain for the Hang Seng Index.

Tom Online's shares rose 5 percent on Sep 5 to close at HK$1.46 in Hong Kong.

China Mobile issued the rules in July after the Chinese government ordered domestic carriers to weed out inappropriate billing practices for mobile-phone services. Tom Online, Sina and other companies must still send new customers two confirmation messages when they subscribe to the non-voice services.

China Mobile's total revenue, 11 percent of which was made up by SMS sales, increased 19.6 percent in the first half from a year earlier.

Source:佚名