>1 million smart card reader
China Mobile operates the world's largest mobile network, providing service for more than 975 million people across China. To support massive volumes of SIM activation, replacement, or number management, they needed a trusted smart card reader infrastructure that could work seamlessly across multiple SIM suppliers and operating systems.
As Markland, we delivered a high-performance and standardized smart card reader platform, and deployed over 1 million-unit scale which enabled a secure remote SIM issuance across China Mobile's nationwide service network.
Our collaboration improved their operational efficiency, strengthened partner competitiveness, and introduced a patented multi-size SIM compatibility that set a new industry benchmark.
China Mobile's service centers process millions of SIM-related transactions every day across 30+ provinces. Just because SIM cards were supplied by multiple manufacturers, they needed a technology that could:
Work reliably across different SIM chip providers
Meet strict telecom security requirements
Integrate with China Mobile's BOSS operating system
Scale to nationwide deployment
In 2014, China Mobile launched a smart card reader partnership program, with annual procurement eventually exceeding 1 million units. Markland became a core technology partner supporting four major SIM suppliers within the China Mobile ecosystem.
China Mobile used SIM and USIM cards from multiple chip vendors, including NXP, ST, and Huahong.
All Smart Card Readers had to fully comply with ISO/IEC 7816 standards and work reliably across all card types without read/write errors. At the time, most readers only supported ID-1 cards, requiring adapters for smaller SIM sizes. This caused:
Slow processing
Poor contact reliability
Operational inefficiencies
China Mobile needed a single reader capable of supporting multiple SIM sizes natively.
Telecom infrastructure requires extremely high security standards. Every hardware component had to meet strict requirements for:
Data integrity
Anti-tampering protection
Long-term operational stability
Selecting the right secure chipset and maintaining strict component quality control was critical.
China Mobile's centralized procurement required over one million readers, delivered on tight timelines to thousands of service locations nationwide.
This required:
Large-scale manufacturing capacity
Coordinated supply chain management
Strict quality control
We designed a next-generation smart card reader platform built for compatibility, speed, and scale. Our solution included the MCR3512 and MCR3516, developed with patented multi-size SIM technology.
Key capabilities included:
Native multi-size SIM support
The readers supported:
ID-1
2FF
3FF
4FF
This eliminated external adapters and significantly improved reliability.
High-performance architecture
We designed MCR3512 and MCR3516 with a secure chipset architecture compliant with ISO/IEC 7816, enabling interface speeds of up to 600 kbps and ensuring full compatibility with all SIM and USIM cards used across China Mobile's ecosystem.
Cross-platform integration
With PC/SC and CCID protocol support, MCR3512 and MCR3516 integrated easily with:
Windows
Linux
Android
macOS
This allowed plug-and-play integration with China Mobile's BOSS remote SIM issuance system.
Secure hardware design
We integrated secure chipsets from HIRSCH, designed for government and critical-infrastructure deployments, providing strong cryptographic protection and secure key management to meet China Mobile's telecom-grade security standards.
Scalable production
We increased manufacturing capacity and secured long-term component supply agreements to reliably support a million-unit.
The deployment delivered strong results across China Mobile's ecosystem.
>1M+ smart card readers shipped
Large-scale rollout across service centers nationwide.
70% market share for partner solutions
Markland's technology provides competitive advantage for vendors.
Improved operational efficiency
Multi-size SIM compatibility reduced errors and eliminated adapter-related failures.
Long-term strategic partnership
Our project strengthened collaboration with China Mobile and positioned Markland for future deployments with telecom operators and enterprise clients.
English 
