BROWSING: Softbank

  Japanese operators KDDI and SoftBank have reached an agreement for the shared use of their base station assets to jointly promote the rapid deployment of 5G networks in Japan's rural areas, the carriers said in a statement. Since 5G networks in Japan use the 28...

  The Japanese government announced it will allow the country’s four mobile carriers to deploy 5G base stations on traffic signals, the Nikkei Asian Review reported. The main aim of the initiative is to reduce the cost and times necessary to deploy 5G networks nationwide by taking advantage...

  Japanese operator SoftBank has selected Nordic vendors Ericsson and Nokia for the deployment of a 5G network in Japan, the vendors said in separate statements. Ericsson said it has been selected by SoftBank as a primary 5G vendor for the deployment of a multi-band 5G...

Japanese operator KDDI expects to launch pre-5G services in September 2019, the company’s president, Makoto Takahashi, said on a conference call with investors. The executive said that KDDI will start to sell 5G phones in March 2020. Takahashi said that the company’s 5G coverage will reach...

Alphabet spin-off Loon, which relies on high-altitude balloons and drones to provide wireless internet service to terrestrial users, has snagged $125 million in investment from Softbank joint venture HAPSMobile. The companies say that they are "actively exploring commercial collaborations to accelerate the deployment of...

Japan's government has approved plans by the country’s four mobile carriers to build 5G wireless networks with investment set to reach JPY 1.6 trillion ($14.4 billion) over the next five years, the Nikkei Asian Review reported. Applications submitted by NTT DoCoMo, KDDI, SoftBank and e-commerce...

$5 billion investment will be allocated over four- to five-year timeframe, SoftBank COO says In 2016, SoftBank's legendary Founder and CEO Masayoshi Son announced the Japanese conglomerate would make a staggering $100 billion in tech-related investments through its Vision Fund. Since then, the company has...

Cisco inks deals with Verizon, Sprint, KT, Rakuten, Softbank and Airtel BARCELONA--Cisco kicked off Mobile World Congress by touting its 5G prowess, both in terms of technology and operator contract wins. Cisco said it has 40 service providers actively trialing and deploying its 5G offerings,...

Sequans Communications has introduced a new version of its Monarch chip platform, combining LTE-M and NB-IoT connectivity. The backward-compatible Monarch 2 chip brings a new secure element, a 60-percent boost in power efficiency, higher levels of integration, and lower costs. Sequans called it the “most...

CFIUS, DoD, DoJ and DHS all OK Sprint, T-Mobile US merger Working to close the mega-merger in the first half of 2019, Sprint and T-Mobile US this week gained key approvals from a number of federal oversight bodies. The $26 billion deal would give the...

Should telecoms operators stick to airtime provision, honing their networks and eking out business, or should they reinvent themselves with 5G as content and services providers for a new digital age? This was the start point for The Great Telco Debate in London, presenting...

IPO will give SoftBank more capital to invest in tech, startups, sharing economy With approval from Japanese financial regulators in hand, SoftBank is working toward a $21.04 billion initial public offering of its telecom business. SoftBank plans to keep around two-thirds of shares in the...

Sprint/T-Mobile US merger could open up US to Chinese "ecosystem," according to former House Intelligence Committee chairman As federal regulator review the proposed mega-merger between carriers Sprint and T-Mobile US, criticism has largely come in the form of concerns about potential impacts on consumer choice...

  The Japanese operator plans to hire Goldman Sachs, Nomura and Deutsche Bank to lead the IPO process Japanese telecommunications group SoftBank has appointed three banks to lead the planned listing of its Japanese mobile business, international press reported. According to the report, SoftBank expects the process...

  NTT DoComo, KDDI and SoftBank aim to launch full 5G services in 2020 Japanese mobile carriers have confirmed plans to launch 5G commercial services in 2019, a year ahead of schedule, local press reported. NTT DoCoMo, KDDI and Softbank representatives said during a communications ministry hearing...

  The JV, dubbed MONET, aims to create a mobility-as-a-service business unit in 2020   Japanese firms Toyota and SoftBank have agreed to form a strategic partnership to facilitate the creation of new mobility services, and plan to establish a joint venture company, MONET Technologies Corporation, before...

  The new technology enables users to transmit data to IoT devices without the need of an IP address   Japanese carrier SoftBank announced that it has successfully completed what it claims to be the world’s first connection test in a commercial environment for Non-IP Data Delivery...

Ericsson will have completed construction of Sprint’s new IoT core network and operating system (OS) by next month, it has said. The US carrier will be able to offer ‘internet of things’ (IoT) connectivity and applications on the new infrastructure in November. The IoT platform,...

Operators Sprint and Vodafone have backed Arm’s integrated SIM (iSIM) technology to help the internet-of-things (IoT) market reach scale. Sprint confirmed it is working with fellow Softbank companies Arm and Packet on its new IoT platform, announced last week. Swedish vendor Ericsson has been handed...

Juniper Research said NTT DoComo, SK Telecom, LG U+, KT and Softbank will be at the forefront of 5G development Japan and South Korea will lead the development of 5G technology, with the two markets accounting for 43% of global 5G connections in 2019, according...

Investor confidence in the burgeoning industrial ‘internet-of-things’ (IIoT) market is up, reckon industry commentators. A slew of enterprise funds and venture capital has been staked on the sector’s growth in recent months, as vendors have got a better grasp of the technology and industrialists have...

  SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said the group is working towards a listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Japanese telecommunications group SoftBank is considering seeking a valuation of about $90 billion for its domestic wireless business in a planned initial public offering (IPO), international press reported,...

T-Mobile US has asked FCC to transfer spectrum licenses from Sprint Deutsche Telekom and SoftBank, respectively the majority owners of T-Mobile US and Sprint, have begun what the U.S. Federal Communications Commission refers to as a "pleading cycle" related to the transfer of spectrum licenses...

The sharing economy is something of a disruptive trend that's reshaping the way people purchase goods and services—with access to bike sharing, ride hailing apps and shared vehicle services like Zipcar, owning a vehicle isn't really necessary or, depending on a number of variables,...