This Day, That Year

Item from Nov 4, 1985, in China Daily: Beijing's first citywide radio-paging service has gone into operation. The service was launched at the Long Distance Telephone Center on West Chang'an Street this week.

When the pager was introduced in China in the early 1980s, the small device was considered a status symbol by many people. But it started disappearing within years as the mobile telecommunications technology continued to evolve.

Now, China ranks No 1 globally in the use of mobile phones.