Telecommunications

April 2008

Vodafone, China Mobile, Softbank Create Joint Innovation Lab
Vodafone Group said Thursday that it, China Mobile and Softbank have agreed to establish a joint innovation lab to promote the development of new mobile technologies, applications and services. The three companies expect the initiative will help to accelerate the commercial deployment of mobile internet services. The three companies will use the JIL as a platform to develop mobile services and drive innovation and synergy in the industry to the benefit of their combined global customer base. The JIL will launch projects based on emerging technologies and market demand, Vodafone said. The JIL will focus on the areas of mobile internet services, such as mobile widgets. Initially, the JIL plans to develop a platform for mobile widgets to encourage the development of innovative new services that can leverage mobile operators' unique capabilities. This move is expected to enable different widgets and applications to run seamlessly on different handset platforms and operating systems across different mobile operators, while safeguarding customer security, data privacy and billing systems. The development of a widget platform is expected to benefit both developers and users. The JIL also welcomes the co-operation of vendors and developers in the creation of new applications and services. The establishment of the JIL and completion is subject to regulatory approvals and certain customary closing conditions. (Dow Jones, Thursday, April 24, 2008)

KDDI FY07 Group Net Profit Rises 16% On Brisk Mobile Phone Ops
KDDI Corp. (9433) said Thursday its group net profit for the fiscal year ended in March rose 16.6% from a year earlier, as the company's mobile operations continued to grow, overcoming bigger losses in its fixed-line business. The Japanese telecommunications company, which runs the country's No. 2 cellular operator by subscribers, said its group net profit increased to Y217.79 billion from Y186.75 billion in the same period the previous year. The fiscal year net profit was below the Y222.3 billion consensus forecast compiled by financial information provider Nikkei Quick from 12 analysts' expectations. Operating profit shot up 16.2% to Y400.45 billion from Y344.70 billion in the year-earlier period, as revenue climbed to Y3.596 trillion from Y3.335 trillion. For the current year ending March, KDDI expects its group net profit to grow 15.7% to Y250 billion on revenue of Y3.508 trillion. KDDI's earnings results are based on Japanese accounting standards. (Dow Jones, Thursday, April 24, 2008)

Japan Communications To Start IP Cell Phone Service This Summer
Japan Communications Inc. (9424) will offer an Internet Protocol (IP) cellular phone service from the July-September quarter of this year. The communications start-up entered the cell phone market by leasing NTT DoCoMo Inc.'s (9437) network. No other company in the world currently offers IP services for handset users. Subscribers will be able to use the service using handsets equipped with special software. Calls will be connected through special servers or via DoCoMo's mobile network. Calls to IP handsets and fixed-line IP phones will be included in a set charge, regardless of the length and frequency of the calls. But calls to regular cell phones will be linked through the regular mobile network and charged based on each call. Japan Communications aims to tap demand mostly among company users because set prices for unlimited calls between IP cell phones could drastically reduce corporate phone bills. The company is considering a pricing plan that would add about 1,500 yen to its regular monthly data communications fee of 3,000 to 4,000 yen. (The Nikkei Monday morning edition, April 21, 2008)