NTT, Fujitsu tie up over next-generation networks beyond 5G
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp and Fujitsu Ltd said Monday they have formed a business partnership to advance the development of next-generation networks beyond 5G and gain a competitive edge.
NTT Electronics Corp, a subsidiary of japan telecom giant, will get a 66.6 percent stake in Fujitsu Advanced Technologies Ltd from parent Fujitsu on June 1.
The Fujitsu subsidiary will be renamed NTT Electronics Cross Technologies Corp. NTT is looking to create communications infrastructure by using cutting-edge technologies, such as for example photonics, under an initiative called IOWN, or Innovative Optical and Wireless Network.
"Photonics is one of the keys," NTT President and CEO Jun Sawada said during an online press conference. "This boils down to semiconductors, so linking subsidiaries related to semiconductors is the starting point."
Fujitsu President Takahito Tokita said further advancements in networks and computing are "essential" to make sure real-time exchanges of massive data as digital formation progresses.
"We thought it had been the best solution to conduct research and development with NTT," Tokita said, stressing the value of innovations that are "global and open."
This past year, NTT formed a capital and business alliance with NEC Corp to co-develop 5G technology.
Fujitsu and NEC are recognized to have built close ties with the predecessor of NTT before it had been privatized in 1985.
Japanese companies have lagged behind their foreign competitors, including China's Huawei Technologies Co in the area of 5G wireless network technology. China's growing dominance in the field in addition has raised security concerns.
Japan and america are now looking to boost competitiveness in the digital field, including 5G and 6G technologies. When Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga met with U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington earlier this month, the allies committed a combined $4.5 billion in this area.
Source: japantoday.com
