Internet
ò Japan is setting up a project to counter what it perceives to be the global dominance of Google and other foreign Internet services. According to the director of the information service industry of the countryÆs ministry of trade, JapanÆs competitiveness can still be found in its core technology even as it needs to create a new value-added service. The Japanese project is comprised of 10 partnerships, each tasked with a specific next-generation search function. Under the alliance, the government has partnered NTT Data with Toyota InfoTechnology Center and Toyota Mapmaster to create an interactive, personalized car navigation system. The other alliances have put together NEC, Hitachi and Sony Computer Science Laboratories. For the project, the ministry of trade said it has allocated Ñ14 billion-Ñ15 billion ($123 million-$132 million).
Mobile/Wireless
ò Fujitsu has release a smartphone exclusively made for the Japan market in a move that marks the entry of the company into the smartphone market. The device called the F1100 is a traditional Windows Mobile slider phone with a 2.6-touch sensitive screen which is also used for fingerprint identification to unlock the keypad. The F1100 will be available on the NTT DoCoMo 3G FOMA network. Fujitsu said the device does not have GSM connectivity, which means that it cannot be used outside Japan. Industry sources say the company will be addressing that limitation in the future.
ò Softbank Corp, the Japanese mobile phone carrier, added a net 188,900 subscribers in August. The carrier described the figure as more than what its rivals have registered for the fourth straight month. KDDI Corp, occupying the number two slot, reported adding 158,500 users, while market sources indicated that NTT DoCoMo lost some 22,900 users.
Hardware
ò Bandai Co. and Buffalo Inc. are releasing a device that will make computers safe for kids. The device, jointly developed by the two companies, is a "key" to be inserted into a personal computer's USB port that will prevent young children from accessing pornographic or other objectionable web sites. The key also restricts what software the child can use and imposes a time limitation on the use of the computer. The key comes in two models, one featuring Mickey Mouse and the other Winnie the Pooh. The device is made for children aged six to nine and is scheduled to be on sale soon through major home electronics stores and other dealers for about Ñ3,480 ($30.60).
Information Technology
ò NTT DoCoMo has revived a plan to offer data centre services to Japanese companies based in Thailand through its wholly owned subsidiary NTT Communications Thailand. NTT DoCoMo previously offered data centre services through a joint venture with Shin Corp before that company was dissolved in 2001. According to an NTT Thailand official, there are about 300 Japanese companies in Thailand without data centre facilities, about 20% of which are expected to transfer to NTTÆs service once the system is in place.
Telecommunications
ò Flag Telecom, an international provider of bandwidth owned by Reliance Communications in India, has awarded a $1.5 billion contract to Fujitsu Ltd. for the construction of Flag's next generation network (NGN) submarine cable. Under the agreement, four new cable systems will be constructed across the Mediterranean, East Africa, Asia and the Pacific region. The project is set to be completed by March 2010. Reliance said the new IP (Internet Protocol) network over submarine cable will nearly double the length of the Flag global network to 115,000 kilometres from the current 65,000 km.
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