[April 17th 2002] NTT DoCoMo and French mobile
communications operator Bouygues Telecom S.A. have announced that the companies
have concluded an agreement under which DoCoMo will license and transfer
technologies to Bouygues Telecom for the launch of
service in France and
French overseas departments *. This agreement also covers the use of the i-mode
trademark by Bouygues Telecom.
Under the licensing pact, DoCoMo will provide Bouygues Telecom with the patents,
know-how, and technologies needed to launch the service on the Global Packet
Radio Service (GPRS), and UMTS networks if Bouygues Telecom is granted a 3G
license in France. The pact will remain valid from April 17, 2002 to April 16,
2012 and is renewable by mutual agreement.
Bouygues Telecom aims to introduce i-mode service in its markets in the next 12
months. Subscribers will enjoy a variety of mobile internet services and content
using cellular phones equipped with dual browsers for i-mode-compatible HTML and
WAP-compatible WML1.X.
"NTT DoCoMo is excited about the prospect of Bouygues Telecom introducing i-mode
service to its subscribers in France," said Keiji Tachikawa, President and
CEO of NTT DoCoMo, Inc. "The service has already been successfully deployed
by E-Plus in Germany and will be launched by KPN Mobile in the Netherlands on
April 18, 2002. With Bouygues Telecom on board, we are glad to see the further
expansion of the i-mode community in Europe."
"We are delighted by the signing of this agreement, which will allow
Bouygues Telecom to offer the French consumers the i-mode services. i-mode means
friendly, easy to use and highly efficient multimedia services which our
customers are eager to discover", said Gilles Pelisson, CEO of Bouygues
Telecom.
i-mode was first launched in Japan by DoCoMo, becoming the world's most popular
mobile internet service with more than 32 million customers. Last month, German
operator E-plus launched i-mode service in Germany, which will be followed by
KPN Mobile in the Netherlands and Belgium.
*includes
French Guyana, Martinique, Guadeloupe and Reunion.
service in France and
French overseas departments *. This agreement also covers the use of the i-mode
trademark by Bouygues Telecom.