The iPhone Air will go on sale on October 22, as Apple's thinnest model ever, supporting only eSIM. (Photo/Wu Xiaoling)

Chongqing - China’s long-delayed eSIM sector is making a comeback. On October 13, the country’s three major telecom operators—China Unicom, China Mobile, and China Telecom—announced they had received approval to launch commercial eSIM trials.

An embedded Subscriber Identity Module, or eSIM, builds SIM card functions directly into a device’s chip, removing the need for a physical card slot. It allows users to switch and manage mobile networks remotely, making connectivity faster and more convenient.

Looking back at the development of eSIM in China, the progress lags behind many other countries and regions. 2017 marked a key moment in China's eSIM exploration when China Mobile launched the world's smallest eSIM NB-IoT communication module.

Then, major domestic operators began catching up. In 2018, cities like Shanghai, Tianjin, and Guangzhou piloted eSIM services, offering a service that allowed users to share a single phone number across two devices. Users could bind their smartphones to wearables like smartwatches, enabling independent communication for both devices.

However, in 2023, eSIM services in China were suspended as all major operators stopped accepting new applications. According to The Cover, the pause stemmed mainly from two concerns. 

On the one hand, eSIM made it easier for users to switch carriers, potentially increasing customer churn and intensifying competition. On the other hand, early eSIM technologies had security gaps that were exploited for telecom fraud, spam, and data abuse, with some users bypassing regulations through overseas eSIM services, raising serious security concerns.

Globally, the rollout of eSIM technology preceded China's, with more proactive efforts in other markets. According to the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA), it is predicted that by 2025, the number of eSIM-enabled smartphones worldwide will surpass 1 billion. By 2030, that figure is expected to rise to 6.9 billion, accounting for 76% of all global smartphone connections.

As one of the earliest markets to commercialize eSIM, the U.S. serves as a representative example. The country’s eSIM journey began in 2014 when AT&T, a U.S. telecommunications company, first introduced eSIM technology in tablet devices, launching a pilot for eSIM applications in consumer electronics. By 2018, the four major U.S. operators had fully adopted eSIM for smartphones, wearables, and other devices, covering mainstream consumer electronics products.

The rapid expansion of the U.S. eSIM market is linked to the push from Apple Inc. In 2018, the iPhone XS series (except for the Chinese mainland version) became the first to support dual-SIM eSIM functionality. Since 2022, iPhone models sold in the U.S. have fully transitioned to eSIM, eliminating the physical SIM card slot.

New mobile devices that support eSIM may also fuel the revival of China's eSIM business. In early September 2025, Apple launched the iPhone Air, the thinnest iPhone in history, which canceled the physical SIM card slot. According to the firm’s official website for the Chinese mainland, the iPhone Air can only be activated through eSIM and does not support traditional physical SIM cards.

Following the release of the iPhone Air, Apple’s official website for the Chinese mainland listed China Unicom as the first operator in the country to support eSIM. Subsequently, China Telecom and China Mobile also announced their readiness to launch eSIM services. Until now, all three operators have officially received approval to offer the services.