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DoCoMo to Launch 4G Network in 2010
NTT DoCoMo president Ryuji Yamada has told the Financial Times that DoCoMo is on schedule rolling out their LTE network infrastructure and will launch in 2010, even if rivals around the world wait.
Central to DoCoMo’s launch strategy is mobile video. DoCoMo will aim to accelerate the uptake of its 4G network by delivering high quality movie downloads to 4G devices. DoCoMo’s recent $45 million investment in in San Diego based mobile video firm PacketVideo fits nicely with this strategy.
DoCoMo will be encouraging users to partake in unlimited mobile data plans, allowing them to use the new LTE network to the fullest.
One of the factors that hamstrung DoCoMo’s 2001 launch of 3G was that it was initially available only in major cities. With this launch NTT will be overlaying the LTE network over the existing 3G network effectively providing nation wide coverage at launch.
The full interview with Ryuji Yamada conducted by the Financial Times can be found here.
