TOKYO (Dow Jones News) -- Japanese electronics company NEC Corp. said it reached an agreement with Germany's Siemens AG, a telecommunications equipment maker, to establish a cell-phone joint venture in Europe.
NEC executive vice-president Masami Shinozaki said Wednesday the venture will receive an investment estimated at between 1 billion yen and 2 billion yen, or $8.5 million and $16.9 million.The specific location and other details will be decided in talks this summer, Shinozaki said.
The venture will develop equipment for the next-generation mobile communication system known as wideband code division multiple access, or W-CDMA, Shinozaki said. The companies will also develop Internet protocols for the W-CDMA system. Internet protocol is the data-transmission method used on the Internet.
W-CDMA, which is currently being developed by Japanese and European companies, would be faster, carry more information and be easier to use with the Internet than digital telecommunication systems that are currently in use, NEC said.
NEC expects services using the new system to begin in Japan in 2001 and in Europe in 2002.
The venture's goal is to capture 20 percent of the world mobile communication systems equipment market.