NTT DOCOMO, NEC, Fujitsu and Fujitsu Semiconductor Limited have agreed to form a joint venture to focus on the development and sales of semiconductor products with built-in modem functions for use in communications equipment.

The joint venture-Access Network Technology Limited, established by Fujitsu-is scheduled to begin operations in August, upon the capital contributions of DOCOMO, NEC, and Fujitsu Semiconductor.

Until now, handset manufacturers including Fujitsu and NEC, together with DOCOMO, conducted communications platform development work collaboratively.

The rapid expansion of the smartphone market and the increase in data traffic volumes have been making communications platforms increasingly important. The technologies individually held by the companies, as well as the results of their joint development work, offer a huge competitive advantage in the smartphone market, which is expected to experience an even greater global expansion.

Against this backdrop, in the form of a new corporate structure, the joint venture, while enhancing management responsiveness, will bring together technologies from each of the companies to develop industry-leading communications platform products, and will provide customers with highly competitive products to meet their needs.

Fujitsu & Fujitsu Semiconductor will have 63.3% share where as NEC and Docomo will have 17.8% & 19.9% respectively.