Three More Motorola cdmaOne Digital Networks Go Commercial in
Japan's National Cellular Expansion Business Editors,
Telecommunications Writers ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill.--(BUSINESS
WIRE)--March 22, 1999--The nationwide expansion in Japan of
commercial CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) digital cellular
network service continued today with the scheduled commercial launch
of three more systems. DDI, one of Japan's leading cellular service
providers, announced the commercial launch of three more networks
using state-of-the-art cellular infrastructure designed, manufactured and
installed by Motorola, Inc.'s Network Solutions Sector (NSS). The CDMA
network also is known as cdmaOne(TM). Last July, the first three of DDI's
networks were commercialized, offering service to people in cities such
as Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto and Nagasaki, plus more than 600 other
communities. The new service launched today adds the Japanese
regions of Shikoku, Hokuriku and Chugoku, which include over 500 more
cities, towns and villages and whose inhabitants number more than 15
million. Next month, IDO and two other DDI regional service providers
will launch commercially the final elements of the nationwide cdmaOne
network buildout, marking the completion of the world's most ambitious
and comprehensive cdmaOne installation project. "cdmaOne's capacity
and high quality connections are perfect for the rapidly growing, quality
conscious Japanese market," said Ron Hamma, vice president and
general manager of NSS operations in Japan. "These three regions are
key additions to the nationwide network being built." The DDI/IDO
nationwide network is comprised of Motorola NSS's SCTM family of base
stations and EMX(R) 5000 mobile switches. The EMX 5000 was developed
jointly by Motorola NSS and Alcatel USA, which manufactures the switch
and provides core platform software. Motorola NSS develops the mobility
applications software. Six-sector technology, which nearly doubles a
cell's capacity, plus state-of-the-art 8 Kbps Enhanced Variable Rate
Coders (EVRC), digital voice encoders that provide landline quality voice
transmission and significant capacity gains, are incorporated throughout
each network system. DDI is the second largest carrier in Japan.
Established in June of 1984, DDI operates eight regional phone
companies that provide both analog and Personal Digital
Communications (PDC) cellular service. IDO was established in March of
1987 to offer mobile phone communication services. IDO's service areas
reach out from the heart of Tokyo and cover much of the central region of
Honshu, the principal island of Japan and the nation's most densely
populated area. Motorola NSS deployed its first cellular system, an
analog TACS network, in 1989 in Japan for DDI's Kansai Cellular
Telephone in the Osaka region. The other seven DDI regions and IDO
followed later to provide nationwide coverage. In 1991, Motorola NSS
introduced NTACS (Narrowband TACS) into Japan when DDI began
NTACS service in Osaka and IDO later launched NTACS service in Tokyo
and Nagoya. In 1993, Motorola NSS began deploying PDC systems at 1.5
GHz in the Tokyo and Tokai regions and at 800 MHz with DDI's other
cellular telephone companies. The nationwide buildout of PDC was
completed by Motorola NSS in late 1996. Motorola, Inc. has been
operating in Japan since opening its first office in 1962 in Tokyo. Motorola
NSS maintains sales, service and engineering support facilities in Japan,
as well as a 3G research and development center. Motorola, Inc. is a
global leader in advanced electronic systems and services. It liberates
the power of technology by creating software-enhanced products that
provide integrated customer solutions and Internet access via wireless
and satellite communications, as well as computing, networking, and
automotive electronics. Motorola also provides essential digital building
blocks in the form of embedded semiconductors, controls and systems.
Sales in 1998 were $29.4 billion. For more information, please visit the
Motorola web site at motorola.com.
CONTACT: Motorola NSS
Joe Arimond 847/632-3889
jarimon1@email.mot.com
or
DDI Corporation
Mamoru Mishina
prdpt@ddi.co.jp |
