Tencent Inc. is to launch its own brand of mobile phones by the end of this year, using the MeeGo operation system developed by Intel and Nokia, a Tencent insider said.

The source said that Tencent had earlier considered using the Android operating system.

Earlier this year, Intel and Tencent signed an agreement on joint development of MeeGo, after Tencent's CTO Xiong Minghua decided to use the operating system.

Other sources said that Tencent and MediaTek (MTK) have reached a deal on the middleware market for cloned mobile phones, an initiative aiming at preventing Tencent's business being impacted by Sky Network Technology Co. Ltd., MTK's middleware solution provider.

Tencent's mobile phones will target the high-end market, the insider added.

China's business press carried the story above on Wednesday. China.org.cn has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.