Vodafone also hopes to buy from other shareholders to raise its stake by as much as 21.7 per cent, it said. If the deal goes through, Vodafone will raise its stake in Japan Telecom to 66.7 per cent from 45 per cent. Japan Telecom said it was considering such a deal but no decision had been made so far. East Japan Railway spokesman Masaki Ogata also confirmed it is in talks with Vodafone. Eager to strengthen its presence in Asia, Vodafone has been steadily increasing its stake in Japan Telecom by buying up the stakes previously held by cash-strapped British Telecommuications.
Japan has one of the most developed and lucrative mobile markets in the world.
Japan Telecom officials say the alliance with Vodafone, a company that boasts a strong global presence, is key to its strategy to compete against NTT DoCoMo, a unit of a former Japanese government monopoly. DoCoMo is leading in next-generation wireless technology called 3G that includes videophones, promising a commercial service in the Tokyo area Oct. 1. J-Phone has postponed the start of its 3G service until June next year. Copyright 2000 Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved.