European Market
European Market

European Market

Intl Round Table on Radio Diversity

Representatives from Europe, the USA and Japan attended the International Round Table on Radio Diversity, held at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), to share the latest findings from private industry, national regulators, academia and research institutes. Mobikyo founders took part, along with other experts, to discuss Europe’s wireless communication schemes which are under increasing stress and fail to deliver the full competitive benefits that citizens expect from their radio regulators.

Manga Mode Launches in Europe

DoCoMo just announced that they will provide popular Japanese manga content for Europe with offerings via Bouygues Telecom becoming available as of today. The initial library of translated titles, including; NARUTO, DRAGON BALL and DEATH NOTE all published by SHUEISHA Inc., will be accessible under the the MANGA MODE section of the carriers mobile portal along with a dedicated reader.

NEC Provides Telefonica Blog Platform

NEC has announced that it is providing Telefonica Espana with a blog platform for their SNS service, “KETEKE,” which includes blogging and “Contenedor Multimedia” where registered SNS users may share photos and videos, in addition to a calendar where members can check and coordinate their schedules. These functions are available through not only the computer and mobile, but via the companies television service “Imagenio” as well. This platform was apparently designed based on an established blogging product from Japan that has been adapted to suit the needs of Telefonica, according to the statement.

Mobilkom Testing NFC Platform

Austrian-based Mobilkom announced they have developed a chip-based NFC system using the VDV-KA international standard for mobile ticketing in conjunction with the Austrian Federal Railways group OBB. In partnership with Nokia, the OBB has launched a pilot project involving 100 test customers and 100 ticket collectors on the test routes Vienna-Krems and Vienna-Gmund, using the NFC-capable 6212 classic handset for a three month trial period.

NEC to Co-op with Telecom Italia

According to JiJi Press, NEC has announced it will cooperate with Telecom Italia in the field of broadband and wireless communications technologies. By the end of next March, NEC plans to set up a facility in Italy to introduce state-of-the-art communications technologies and conduct connection tests. Through the tie-up, NEC will aim to win contracts to supply communications equipment to Rome-based Telecom Italia, the leading telecommunications service provider in Italy, and carriers in other European nations and Latin American countries which are affiliated with the Italian firm.

DoCoMo Buys into Blue Ocean Wireless

DoCoMo has announced that it invested 10 million U.S. dollars to acquire an 11.5 percent stake in Blue Ocean Wireless (BOW), an Irish company providing GSM communication systems to the merchant maritime sector. The acquisition is the latest joint endeavor with its affiliate Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT), including PLDT’s wholly owned mobile subsidiary Smart Communications, Inc. (SMART), one of BOW’s shareholders. As part of the arrangement, DoCoMo intends to assist BOW’s management in adding value to its services for global maritime carriers.

DoCoMo Europe Subsidiary to Close

NTT DoCoMo just announced that DoCoMo Europe (France) S.A.S., a wholly owned subsidiary of DoCoMo Europe Ltd., will be closed at the end of this year and a representative office in Paris will be established in January 2008. With the main role of the subsidiary now reduced to the monitoring of the European telecom industry, DoCoMo has decided to replace it with a representative office that will liaise in matters related to DoCoMo’s business interests in Europe.