Reuters, 03.01.02, 9:49 AM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - NTT DoCoMo Friday debuted on the New York Stock Exchange as part of the Japanese mobile phone operator's plan to launch new services worldwide.
Shares of DoCoMo, whose name is a play on words meaning "anywhere," opened at $53.50 on the Big Board. The U.S. listing, which followed a debut on the London Stock Exchange earlier Friday, is meant to attract foreign shareholders and help in linking up with partners.
The U.S.-traded shares make it easier for DoCoMo to pursue partnerships with U.S. companies -- DoCoMo currently has a 16 percent stake in the No. 3 U.S. wireless firm, AT&T Wireless Services Inc. , among others.
DoCoMo, which becomes the 17th Japanese company to list on the NYSE, has jumped to the front of the technology line with its "i-mode" Internet-access service. The service allows access to e-mail and Web pages and has snared 30 million customers, the equivalent of a quarter of Japan's population.
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp owns 64 percent of DoCoMo, which listed on the Tokyo bourse in 1998.
Copyright 2002, Reuters News Service |
