Telecommunications

January 2004

Japan and China will launch joint research on 4th generation mobile phone. The government's Communications Research Laboratory and private-sector companies will team up with Chinese research institutions and firms this autumn on a project to develop a technology standard for future mobile telephony. NTT Communications Corp., KDDI Corp., Hitachi Ltd., NEC Corp. and Fujitsu Ltd. will be among the Japanese participants, while Chinese members of the project will include the China Academy of Telecommunications Research, the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications and local telecom carriers. The advanced phones will be able to receive/transmit calls and movies through the Internet at speeds on a par with fiber-optic networks. The participants will seek to develop a common format for Japan and China by the end of 2005 and sell the technology to other East Asian countries, where great demand is projected for 4G cellular phone services when they become available around 2010. The joint project is also aimed at countering a Western initiative to take the leadership in the standardization of fourth-generation mobile phone formats. The project will also work on a standard telecom protocol for consumer electronics products that can be operated from outside the home via the Internet or other wireless communication networks. China is the largest cellular phone market in the world with 250 million subscribers, while 80 million people had access to the Internet. (January 30, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun)

Prime Minister Koizumi is reviewing to establish a new ministry for specializing the administration of IT (information technology)-related policies. At a Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy (CEFP) meeting, Koizumi instructed members to review creating a ministry that will take over the data communications division from the Telecommunications Ministry and the other IT-related division from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). Telecommunications Minister Taro Aso proposed creating such a ministry, and METI Minister Shoichi Nakagawa agreed, citing South Korea's example. If the Home Affairs Ministry and the METI do not have a problem with the idea, Koizumin suggested integrating their IT-related divisions into a single information communications ministry. The Telecommunications Ministry also has jurisdiction over postal operations, whose privatization is slated to begin in 2007. This prompted Koizumi to suggest establishing the new ministry around 2007. A similar integration of IT divisions was also proposed in 2001, when the government compiled proposals for reorganizing its ministries and agencies. As there was a strong opposition from the ministries and lawmakers that would have been affected by the reorganization, the proposal was subsequently scrapped. Although the heads of the Telecommunications and METI ministries have given their approval, it is not certain whether the proposal will sail smoothly as how the Liberal Democratic Party will react to Koizumi's initiative. (January 17, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun)

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) will jointly develop next-generation fiber-optic cables with private companies and academic institutions as a way to facilitate the proliferation of fiber-optic cable networks to households. The ministry plans to develop by 2006 less expensive fiber-optic cables made of plastics which will replace the current ones made of glass. If the new product improves networks of fiber-optic cables, the proliferation of intelligent home appliances using high-speed, large-volume information transmission can become viable. With the new fiber-optic cables, the ministry also aims to improve Japanese companies' competitiveness in the growing global market of optical communications. Keio University, Tohoku University, Asahi Glass Co., Fuji Xerox Co., Hitachi Cable Ltd. and Furukawa Electric Co. will be among joint developers of the new fiber-optic cables. The ministry will set aside Y185 million in next fiscal year's budget to support the developers. The use of plastics in the next-generation cables is expected to lower the cost of material to 10% of those made of glass, while maintaining the same transmission speed as that of conventional products. The ministry expects the cost of laying cables to connect houses with fiber-optic networks to be reduced by 50% or more with the next generation cables. (January 14, the Yomiuri Shimbun, the Daily Yomiuri)