Telecom regulator pushes for removal of domestic roaming fees

China's telecom regulator said on Thursday it will push carriers to waive domestic roaming charges, a fee that is receiving wide criticism but still a key source of revenue for the "Big Three" telecom companies.

Wen Ku, director of the telecom sector under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said mobile charges should be decided by the market and the government encourages carriers to gradually stop charging domestic roaming fees as competition heats up.

"We will make more efforts so mobile users will pay an equal price for local and cross-province calls," Wen said at a news conference detailing China's quarterly performance in industrial and telecom sectors.