New York, October 18, 2004 —
NTT DoCoMo USA, Inc., the American subsidiary of NTT DoCoMo, Inc., Japan’s largest mobile communications company, announced today that it will launch namikiteru™ a Public Wireless LAN access service for Japanese-speaking residents in the United States on November 1, 2004. Reflecting the current popularity of Japanese cultural references in the United States, the brand name namikiteru translates as the wave is coming. This aptly describes both the trend of Public Wireless LAN access, as well as the radio wave itself. namikiteru is the first service marketed by NTT DoCoMo USA.
The new service will provide subscribers with high-speed Internet access over Public Wireless LAN access points. Subscribers will be able to browse Japanese-language portal sites operated by DoCoMo USA, and obtain technical support in the Japanese language. After installation of namikiteru software on a subscriber’s Java™-enabled mobile handset, users will be able to send and receive e-mail in the Japanese language.*
“We are pleased to introduce our first service to Japanese expatriates based in the United States. Today’s announcement of namikiteru service demonstrates DoCoMo USA’s first step to bringing multimedia offerings to the U.S. and delivering meaningful content to consumers,” said Nobuharu Ono, President & CEO of NTT DoCoMo USA.
Applications to subscribe to namikiteru service will be available as of October 20, 2004 on the namikiteru Japanese-language web site: http://www.namikiteru.com. Detailed information regarding the hardware and software specifications required for the service and other terms and conditions for the service are outlined on the web site. Subscription fees which include 50 hours of access will be $34.99/month for a monthly contract, or a discounted rate of $29.99/month for an annual contract.
* Packet price for email retrieval is not included in the subscription fee; subscribers should confirm in advance that their handsets are able to run Japanese-font applications.
About NTT DoCoMo USA, Inc.
NTT DoCoMo USA, Inc. is the fully owned U.S. subsidiary of NTT DoCoMo, Inc., Japan’s leading mobile communications company. Established in November 1999, NTT DoCoMo USA contributes to its parent company’s global competitiveness by actively developing business relationships, researching the U.S. wireless and IT industries, and supporting local PR and IR activities. In addition, its subsidiary DoCoMo Communications Laboratories USA, Inc. pursues breakthrough research innovation in mobile communications for future generations of wireless networks.
namikiteru and the namikiteru logo are trademarks of NTT DoCoMo USA, Inc. in the United States.
Java is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.
