NEC, MOTOROLA SUPPLY BASE STATIONS FOR KDDI'S NEW CELL NETWORK

Japan's NEC Corp. (TSE:6701) and Motorola Inc. on Thursday announced that they will provide wireless base stations for KDDI Corp.'s (TSE:9433) next-generation mobile network.

The LTE (Long Term Evolution) standard paves the way for cellular communications speeds on a par with fiber-optic lines, enabling users to download a music CD in less than one minute and a two-hour movie in about five minutes. With an eye toward commercializing the technology in December 2012, KDDI plans to spend 515 billion yen (US$5.5 billion) on related capital investments through the end of fiscal 2014.

The cellular service carrier solicited proposals from a wide range of equipment providers, including Chinese and European firms. It has already selected Hitachi Ltd. (TSE:6501) to build the network's core infrastructure.

Both NEC and Motorola are expected to receive orders for tens of billions of yen. NEC has also been selected to supply wireless base stations for NTT DoCoMo Inc.'s (TSE:9437) LTE network, slated for introduction in December 2012.

(Nikkei) rw

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