TOKYO-As part of its effort to become a comprehensive multimedia service provider rather than just a cellular telephone operator, NTT Mobile Communications Network (NTT DoCoMo) has joined up with the world’s leading software companies to use their leading-edge enabling technologies.
Japan’s cellular telephone market, which has enjoyed rapid expansion for the past couple of years, has been losing its high rate of growth. As part of their efforts to get a new edge on the industry, several carriers including DoCoMo have launched Internet access services. With its series of recent tie-ups, DoCoMo will step forward with its plan to convert its cellular phone into a multimedia terminal.
In turn, its three partners-Microsoft, Sun Microsystems and Symbian-decided to join with Japan’s leading carrier in an attempt to establish a stronghold in expanding their wireless businesses.
In mid-March NTT DoCoMo and Microsoft announced they have come to reach a wide-ranging agreement to develop new products and services with wireless communications technologies. Under the agreement, the two firms said they will improve functionality of Windows CE for mobile users, develop a data center for mobile users and develop technologies to support a higher speed PHS service.
Their data center will provide DoCoMo users with a wide variety of services, including e-mail, scheduling ability and an address book. Both firms will also jointly develop software and terminals-either palm-sized PCs, handheld PCs or PDAs-specialized for the services.
Neither firm has disclosed a schedule for commercial deployment of these services. However, NTT DoCoMo spokeswoman Masami Kawasaki said the company would like to produce certain “fruit” from its joint effort by the end of this year.
Just one day before the announcement, DoCoMo and Sun Microsystems announced they had concluded a technical partnership agreement aimed at introducing Sun’s Java, Jini and Java card technology into DoCoMo’s iMode cellular phones. DoCoMo in February kicked off new iMode services, with which users can receive a variety of online services, including mobile banking, airline and movie ticket reservations, information access services such as headline news or weather forecasts, and fortune-telling.
Kawasaki that with the Sun agreement, the carrier will be able to expand the scope of its iMode services. Kawasaki also said that by applying the Java technology, the carrier would be able to use common software for providing its networking services to customers. Since current PDC terminals carry different operating systems (OS) developed by each terminal manufacturer, DoCoMo so far has had to develop different software to fit with each OS.
These two firms will develop a prototype Java-based terminal by the end of this year and will market a new terminal as early as next year.
On the same day, NTT DoCoMo also announced it signed an agreement with Symbian, a U.K.-based leading operating system provider for wireless information devices, for jointly developing an OS and terminals for next-generation cellular phones. DoCoMo is planning to launch its W-CDMA services at the beginning of 2001. Industry observers say Symbian’s EPOC operating system is expected to be the likeliest prospective choice for the next-generation cellular system.
Symbian, jointly owned by Psion, Ericsson, Motorola and Nokia, is scheduled to open an office in Tokyo to promote its business.
