Japanese telecom giant NTT DoCoMo is set to add “4G” services to its U.S. mobile virtual network operator offering through an expanded agreement with T-Mobile US.
The expansion feeds off a previous MVNO launch in early 2011 designed to target Japanese expatriates traveling or living in the United States. NTT DoCoMo USA noted that it plans to tap into T-Mobile US’s “nationwide 4G” network by the end of the year for the MVNO service with a “wide variety of new pricing plans and options.”
The move provides a nice kick for T-Mobile US’ expanding wholesale operations, which posted 319,000 net customer additions during the recent second quarter. The carrier’s LTE network had reached 116 markets covering 157 million potential customers at mid-year on its way to expected coverage of 200 million pops by the end of 2013.
T-Mobile US President and CEP John Legere noted in a statement that the carrier would initially target 400,000 “Japanese students, workers and other expatriates” that already use the DoCoMo MVNO service. “It’s a great starting point as we identify future opportunities for collaboration between our two companies,” Legere added.
NTT DoCoMo has a bit of history in the U.S. wireless space having been a significant investor in AT&T Wireless Services in 2001, sinking nearly $10 billion into the operator for a 16% stake. That move helped spur AWS’ early move to launching UMTS-based services in a handful of markets, as well as early mobile Internet services based on the mMode brand. NTT DoCoMo eventually sold its stake in AWS following Cingular’s $41 billion purchase of its domestic rival.
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