TOKYO—NTT Communications, a long-distance and international business unit of NTT Group, is going to launch wireless local area network (WLAN) service in mid-2003 using next-generation technology developed by Soma Networks, both firms announced on 3 April.
According to the companies, NTT Communications is going to launch the service for 100 households in central Japan in mid-2002 on an experimental basis, and will launch commercial-based service in all major cities around the nation in mid-2003.
The system, based on Soma’s technologies, will provide up to 10 Megabits per second (Mbps) data transmission speed. NTT Communication is planning to provide the service at around 5,000 yen (US$37.80) per month. The terminal to be placed at the end user’s house is expected to sell at 30,000 yen (US$227) to 40,000 yen (US$302) per unit.
NTT East, a regional operator of NTT Group, is planning to launch WLAN service using the 5 GHz band soon.
