China Mobile announced on Sunday that users can start booking cell phones based on its fourth generation (4G) network, signaling the official debut of the fastest mobile service in China after heated speculation and government briefings that indicated the technology's availability by the end of this year.

The service will first start in Guangzhou and Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, the Guangdong branch of China Mobile said on its website.

From the end of this year, the 4G service will be expanded to other areas in the country, China Mobile, the country's largest mobile carrier, told the Global Times on Sunday.

A customer service staff member with the Guangzhou branch told the Global Times Sunday that users need to change their phones to ones that support the 4G network.

Customers can start using 4G phones by the end of October, the company said.

The 4G network is faster and more stable than 3G, and the fees will drop in the future, Fu Liang, an independent analyst, told the Global Times on Sunday.

China Mobile is trialing its homegrown TD-LTE 4G network in Hong Kong, as well as in some mainland cities such as Hangzhou and Wenzhou in East China's Zhejiang Province since the end of 2012.

Miao Wei, head of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, told a forum Tuesday that China will issue 4G telecommunications licenses before the end of 2013.

China Unicom, one of China's three mobile giants, is reportedly developing a TDD-LTE 4G network. China Telecom is also reportedly following suit, though observers said the two are reluctant to join the 4G competition, as 3G services are yet to be saturated.

Fu said the policy adjustment for 4G will determine whether China Mobile can expand its advantage over the two smaller competitors.