China Unicom recently unveiled its brand logo for its 3G business, a significant step in the process of strengthening its brand equity as China adopts 3G technologies.

The new logo is comprised of the word “wo”-the most-frequently-used exclamation, and its homophonic Chinese character “沃”-meaning fertile and rich. China Unicom strategically uses three different colored logos to reach different target markets: young people, business people, and families.

Following in the footsteps of China Telecom and China Mobile which launched their 3G services and brands “e-surfing” and “G3” respectively not long before, China Unicom, as one of three 3G license bearers in China, is ready to tap into this sophisticated arena and carry out its brand strategy to compete head on with these two rivals. It is interesting to note that China Unicom has created three modifications of the logo in order to effectively reach their various target markets, whereas their competitors released only one generic logo.

It’s certain that none of the three companies want to be outdone in this first round of intense competition in the 3G market. Who will become the market leader? It is too soon to tell, but an effective logo will have significant implications for the future success of these telecom giants.