## Section 8 Promoting R&D

### 1. Developing R&D Policies in the Information and Communications Field

In order for Japan to achieve sustainable economic development and for Japanese people to lead safe lives with a sense of reassurance, it is necessary to make active and strategic investment in the selected fields of science and technology, and to maintain and develop the competitiveness of industry by promoting R&D. The Second-term Science and Technology Basic Plan (decided by the Cabinet in March 2001) set forth that special focus will be placed on four fields of science and technology including the information and communications field, and that R&D resources will be preferentially allocated to these fields. The Telecommunications Council of the MPHPT submitted a “blueprint for an R&D approach for Japan in the info-communications field” in August 2002, and by presenting a basic R&D strategy, emphasized the importance of promoting R&D according to the basic strategy. Furthermore, the Telecommunications Council deliberated on “R&D/standardization strategies toward increasing the technological competitiveness in the information and communications field,” and upon reporting the findings in March 2003, compiled the R&D themes and policies to be undertaken into the “R&D Basic Plan (Fourth Edition),” “R&D Implementation Strategy,” and “Standardization Strategy.”

Toward effective and efficient promotion of R&D, the MPHPT formulated the “MPHPT Guidelines for Evaluating Research and Development on Information and Communications,” and commenced research evaluation as part of policy evaluation from fiscal 2002 using the project evaluation method. Since the need for establishment of a competitive R&D environment, particularly expansion of competitive funds and fair, highly-transparent evaluation, has been pointed out for effective utilization of the limited R&D funds, the MPHPT promotes the strategic information and communications R&D promotion system and implements R&D by inviting proposals of themes from the public.

R&D in the information and communications field involves abundant R&D elements and requires large capital investment due to the specialty and high cost of the necessary facilities, so private companies face enormous obstacles in investing in R&D in this field. Therefore, the MPHPT intends to further advance R&D in the information and communications field by establishing and expanding special taxations to support the R&D.

An independent administrative institution, the Communications Research Laboratory, is expected to play its role as the sole public R&D institution in the information and communications field. It undertakes leading-edge R&D, which is too risky to be carried out by the private sector, to contribute to enhancing the competitiveness of the Japanese information and communications industry and contribute to realizing affluent national life through utilization of cutting-edge IT technology. Moreover, the MPHPT established an IT R&D base (an open laboratory) equipped with an R&D environment including functionally sophisticated network facilities in the Keihanna Human Info-Communication Research Center of the Communications Research Laboratory in fiscal 2002 with the aim of discovering and utilizing research potentials of local communities and smoothly introducing the research findings to society. The Communications Research Laboratory is scheduled to consolidate with the Telecommunications Advancement Organization of Japan (TAO) in April 2004 to form a new organization, the Info-Communications Research Institute.

### 2. Implementing Selective R&D

## (1) R&D of technologies for achieving ubiquitous networks

With further acceleration of network speed and diversification of network access modes, arrival of a “ubiquitous network society” is anticipated in the future, allowing use of large-capacity applications. A ubiquitous network society, which will be realized through a combination of Japan’s highly reputed technologies—optical communications, mobile, and intelligent home appliances—is also expected to contribute greatly to securing international competitiveness. Therefore, in fiscal 2003, the MPHPT commenced R&D of elemental technologies that are indispensable for achieving ubiquitous networks, such as the ultra high-speed, real-time authentication technology and the network technology to coordinate and control an enormous number of terminals.

The electronic tags that are currently used in place of barcodes mainly for physical distribution management and entrance/exit management are expected to serve as a basic tool for ubiquitous networks by developing further linkage with networks in the future. Accordingly, the MPHPT