TOKYO-Sony Corp., the globally renowned manufacturer of consumer electronics products, plans to launch wireless local loop (WLL) service in Japan before the end of the year.
Sony has submitted an application to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications for a Type I license, which is for a facilities-based telecommunications business, as well as for a radio station operator’s license.
It will be the first time any consumer electronics manufacturer has launched a Type I business.
With this new wireless business, Sony plans to transform itself into a comprehensive IT service provider. It wants to offer a variety of network businesses, including telecommunications and electronic commerce.
Masayoshi Morimoto, managing director of Sony, has reportedly said the firm will make the new WLL business a core business.
According to the firm’s plan, Sony will initially launch WLL services in the Tokyo, Nagoya and Kansai areas of Japan before the end of the year. However, the firm eventually plans to expand services nationwide.
The Sony WLL service will target small- to medium-sized enterprises that use Sony’s communications devices, such as the VAIO personal computer and its Play Station.
Sony is currently promoting its telecommunications business through Sony Communication Network (SCN) and Crosswave Communications Inc. (CWC).
SCN is one of the largest Internet service providers in Japan, with 500,000 subscribers, and in fiscal 1998 for the first time finished the year in the black. The firm aims to get 1 million subscribers in fiscal 1999.
CWC, a joint venture with Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (IIJ) and Toyota Motor Corp., at the end of April launched high-speed data communications services. The service is currently limited to the Tokyo, Nagoya, Kansai and Hokuriku areas, but the firm plans to expand its services nationwide by next March.
