China cut its phone monopoly in two along a line on the map, and China Netcom got the north. In 2002 the government gave the old China Telecom's networks in ten northern provinces to Netcom. China Telecom kept the other 21. Netcom became the main provider of phone lines, broadband and business data in Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Henan, Shandong and Liaoning. Two years later it sold shares to investors in New York and Hong Kong.

A Startup Saved by a Split

The first China Netcom started in 1999 as a wholesaler of fast data networks. Its backers included Jiang Mianheng, the son of President Jiang Zemin, and Liu Chuanzhi, the chairman of Legend Computers. The business struggled because China Telecom held a monopoly. Then the 2002 break-up handed Netcom a third of China Telecom's assets. It also merged in Jitong Communications. The new group could sell phone service anywhere in China, but its strength was the north.

Olympic Lines, Then Unicom

The offering priced at $21.82 per American depositary share, which equaled HK$8.48 per share. Each ADS held 20 shares. Trading began on the New York Stock Exchange on November 16, 2004, and in Hong Kong a day later. Netcom carried the fixed lines for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. That June it agreed to merge with China Unicom. The deal closed on October 6, 2008, and Netcom's shares left both exchanges that month.

Cover: The Fishermen of Katase Hauling in Their Nets: The Purple Shell (Murasakigai), Katsushika Hokusai. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for fishermen hauling in their nets (the Netcom network).