TOKYO-While operators and venders successfully found a way to interconnect two different systems for third-generation services, NTT DoCoMo and its vendors are now gearing up to develop equipment for wideband-CDMA (W-CDMA).
NTT DoCoMo in April selected a total of 11 3G vendors, including three foreign manufacturers. The current schedule calls for each vendor to develop and provide to DoCoMo by January 2000 its prototype for infrastructure and terminals. Once it has examined the equipment and is satisfied with it, DoCoMo will order commercial units for delivery by fall 2000. After a several-month field test, DoCoMo plans to launch its 3G services in March 2001. DoCoMo said it must launch its 3G business based on W-CDMA in second quarter 2001 because its allocated bandwidth will be running out by that time.
The companies are promoting their development efforts while at the same time carefully watching the process at the 3G Partnership Project (3GPP) and the 3G Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) international standardization bodies. 3GPP was originally working on standardization efforts for WCDMA, while 3GPP2 was responsible for cdma2000. However, since harmonization efforts have begun, 3GPP is now responsible for standardization for the direct spread (DS) 3G standard, and 3GPP2 is working on the multi carrier (MS) 3G standard.
3GPP and 3GPP2 were initially scheduled to compile the Release 99 version this fall. 3GPP seems to be on the right track, but the process at 3GPP2 is reportedly delayed.
The draft of Release 99 is supposed to go through a series of International Telecommunication Union (ITU) committees in the fall. A meeting of the Technical Specification Group (TSG) will be held for six days beginning 6 October. The ITU-R Task Group 8-1 will meet for two weeks beginning 25 October, the ITU-R Study Group will meet for three days beginning 10 November, and TSG will meet again 13-17 December to supposedly finalize Release 99.
Keeping to the schedule
NTT DoCoMo plans to launch its W-CDMA services based on Release 99. After Release 2000 is compiled at the end of 2000, the carrier will modify its systems to fit Release 2000.
Kohei Sato, executive director of the IMT-2000 Group at NTT DoCoMo, said he does not think the company will have to change its hardware; rather it will modify the system by rewriting the software.
The development schedule for manufacturers is very tight. Release 99 isn’t scheduled to be finalized until December, and manufacturers are supposed to deliver the prototypes to DoCoMo in January.
Eisuke Iwabuchi, general manager of mobile communication systems development division for Fujitsu, one of the NTT-selected vendors, said it will be able to keep the schedule because outlines of the release are already available since the standard is being created by operator and vendor employees.
“It’s a tough job, but we believe we will be able to keep the schedule,” he said.
The five selected base transceiver station (BTS) manufacturers most likely will develop quite similar units following basic specifications worked out by DoCoMo.
Koichi Honma, director of the Mobile Telecommunication Systems Development Center for Matsushita Communication Industrial Co. Ltd., another selected vendor, said that functions and prices of the BTSs will be quite similar to each other.
Handsets
DoCoMo and the selected 10 vendors making terminal prototypes are still negotiating detailed specifications for the terminals. DoCoMo’s Sato said DoCoMo is asking vendors to develop terminals with a variety of functions and looks.
Matsushita recently provided three different types of 3G terminals: a visual phone with a camera, large screen and 64 kbps data transmission speed capabilities (260 cc and weighing 260 grams); a terminal exclusively for voice services with only 93 cc; and a PC data card that enables users to transmit data at 64 kbps, even from a moving car.
“We will develop … small, light and handheld 3G terminals based on these three prototypes,” said Minoru Kuramoto, managing director of Matsushita.
Although IMT-2000 systems are required to have 2 Mbps data transmission functionality in a stationary state, Sato said DoCoMo will initially launch W-CDMA services at speeds between 64 kbps and 384 kbps.
Matsushita has been gearing up its development effort for units with data transmission speeds of 2 Mbps. But Kuramoto said 2 Mbps services might be limited to specific applications, such as for services within a building complex.
Technologies
DoCoMo is considering implementing a variety of new 3G services, including some based on Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and BlueTooth. DoCoMo’s Sato suggested the company may implement both WAP and BlueTooth as its standardized services.
WAP Forum member carriers and vendors are promoting standardization, but the work is still in progress.
DoCoMo earlier this year launched its iMode Internet access service, but now it is seeking to merge iMode with WAP.
While BlueTooth is a prospective service for DoCoMo, Matsushita’s Honma says BlueTooth is still too heavy and big for its small terminals. However, Honma suggested Matsushita may be able to develop a smaller version and implement BlueTooth on its terminals in the future.
Vendors will have their own choice for an operating system (OS). Several months ago, NTT DoCoMo concluded an alliance with Symbian to use EPOC, Symbian’s OS, for its 3G terminals.
Matsushita’s Kuramoto said that EPOC will be the main OS for 3G terminals, but not all of its terminals will be based on EPOC. For example, Matsushita’s voice-only terminal won’t need to carry EPOC; however, pocket-sized terminals, such as a visual phone, will need to use EPOC. On the other hand, portable PC-type terminals may need Windows CE rather than EPOC.
Unlike other carriers, DoCoMo provides its proprietary sequence software to its vendors. This is a basic connecting software, and DoCoMo prefers that its vendors use its sequence software for smoothly interconnecting units provided by different vendors.
Big business
Vendors are rushing to enter the 3G arena because it seems to represent big business. DoCoMo reportedly has spent 2 trillion yen (US$17.9 billion) for constructing infrastructure for the current services based on its second-generation PDC standard, and it is believed the company is spending the same amount of money for constructing infrastructure for its 3G services.
Matsushita’s Honma said his firm hopes to get 20 percent of NTT’s 3G contracts.
Fujitsu’s Iwabuchi said his firm would like to get 300 billion yen (US$2.69 billion) per year from overall worldwide 3G business, while Yoshitake Matsuo, general manager of NEC’s Mobile Communications Systems Division, another selected vendor, said his firm is targeting annual sales of 500 billion yen (US$4.49 billion) by 2005.
Regarding the terminal market, some sources say it is similar in size to the infrastructure market, while others say it is twice as large.
While this does sound like big business, developing 3G equipment costs vendors a lot of money. Vendors aren’t willing to provide detailed information on development costs, but NEC’s Matsuo said his firm is spending tens of billions of yen per year for development.
Fujitsu’s Iwabuchi said since the development cost is so huge, only companies with huge financial power can be involved in the 3G business.
Like NTT DoCoMo, Japan Telecom (JT) is planning to launch its 3G business based on W-CDMA in the second quarter of 2001. JT is planning to select its vendors soon. Takeshi Hashino, executive adviser to the board of Japan Telecom Co. Ltd. (JT), said JT will expand the W-CDMA network nationwide by 2004. Hashino also said that in the future, the carrier hopes to connect its 3G network with JT’s next-generation tru
nk network called PRISM.
IDO Corp. and DDI Corp. have jointly provided nationwide cdmaOne service since July and plan to jointly pr
ovide 3G services in the future based on American National Standards Institute (ANSI) 41.
At present these two carriers are conducting field tests using products from three vender groups: Fujitsu, Oki Electric Industry Co. and Matsushita Communications Industrial Co.; Lucent Technologies; and Motorola and NEC Corp.
These two firms will conduct field tests based on both DS and MC focusing on high-speed data communications.
