Ericsson selected by NTT DoCoMo to deliver world's first commerical WCDMA

Ericsson selected by NTT DoCoMo to deliver world's first commercial WCDMA mobile phones and base stations Ericsson has been selected by NTT DoCoMo, the world's largest cellular operator, to deliver both WCDMA mobile phones and base station systems. This represents an early breakthrough in third generation (3G) mobile communications. Ericsson is leading the development of 3G, which is one of the key elements for long-term growth. The agreement to deliver WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) mobile phones is Ericsson's first and the phones will be developed in Sweden and Japan. The WCDMA mobile phones used in the third generation mobile systems will have multimedia capabilities, allowing wireless Internet access, as well as sending and receiving voice, data, still and moving images. The third generation mobile systems can be viewed as the first generation truly mobile Internet. "Ericsson is a driving force in technology standardization, being a leading part of industry initiatives like Bluetooth, EPOC, WAP and 3GPP. These technologies and 3G project, together with the fact that we are far ahead in developing phones and terminals for WCDMA, put us in a unique and strong position," says Jan Ahrenbring, Vice President Marketing and Communications, Ericsson Mobile Communications. Furthermore, Ericsson has been selected to deliver WCDMA base station systems to NTT DoCoMo, which is part of the first agreement to deliver WCDMA infrastructure for commercial use. For a user, these new base station systems enables wireless IP and other multimedia applications, efficiently combining a range of simultaneous datacom and telecom services at different speeds. "NTT DoCoMo's selection of Ericsson as a supplier for 3G equipment confirms our leading position in building the first generation truly mobile Internet," says Mats Köhlmark, Vice President, Ericsson Radio Systems, and head of Ericsson's business unit WCDMA Systems. "We are very pleased to be selected to deliver our WCDMA infrastructure. The details of this mobile network technology are in line with Ericsson's pioneering proposal and the needs of the global operators." Japan will be leading the way for WCDMA market deployment and continues to be one of Ericsson's most significant markets. WCDMA will create a global market both for systems and consumer products. NTT DoCoMo is a driving force behind the development of the third generation mobile systems. NTT DoCoMo plans to offer public 3G service in Japan by 2001. Ericsson is today leading the 3G development and has set up WCDMA experimental systems in Japan, Germany, Italy, UK, Sweden and China. These full-fledged 3G systems are used to experiment with delivery of new services, leveraging Ericsson's more than 10 years of research in 3G technologies. Ericsson is also leading with experimental systems for multiple technologies, like the first systems focusing on EDGE. Image of conceptual Ericsson WCDMA phones can be viewed at: http://webgrp01.ericsson.se/pressroom/phli_p.shtml Ericsson is the leading provider in the new telecoms world, with communications solutions that combine telecom and datacom technologies with freedom of mobility for the user. With more than 100,000 employees in 140 countries, Ericsson simplifies communications for its customers - network operators, service providers, enterprises and consumers - the world over. Please visit Ericsson's Press Room at: http://www.ericsson.se/pressroom FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT Jan Ahrenbring, Marketing and Communications Director Ericsson Mobile Communications AB Phone: + 46 8 764 1460, +46 70 590 9900 Eric Österberg, Communications Director Ericsson Corporate Communications Phone: +46 70 590 0599; E-mail: eric.osterberg@lme.ericsson.se Morgan Bengtsson, President, Nippon Ericsson K.K. Phone: + 81 3 3221 8201, + 81 3 3221 8200 Ericsson in Japan and its leading position in 3G Each month close to 1 million new mobile phone users are added in Japan. Ericsson has a strong legacy in Japan, having delivered base stations to NTT DoCoMo's PDC network since 1992, and delivered the first WCDMA experimental solution to Tokyo early last year. The company has delivered complete mobile systems to Japan since 1994 and Ericsson was the first non-domestic company to enter Japan with an extensive mobile systems experience. Ericsson is one of two suppliers in the world to deliver a total system solution for the Japanese PDC standard. Ericsson is currently delivering mobile systems to more than 5 operators in Japan, giving Ericsson a market share of more than 10% in the country - the highest market share for any non- Japanese vendor. PDC (Personal Digital Cellular) is the world's second largest digital standard - with more than 40 million users. Ericsson is the pioneer in WCDMA, with more than 10 years of research into 3G technologies. Combined with its strong leadership in dedicated wireless datacom networks the company has been focusing heavily on wireless IP for a long time and is leading this development. Ericsson is also leading the way with capturing pre 3G contracts. The company has won more than 60% of GPRS contracts to date - with Ericsson's GPRS systems bringing packet switching to mobile networks. Ericsson has also been the first company to develop and showcase EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution), bringing TDMA and GSM operators together. GPRS and EDGE - Ericsson's speed-increasing air interface solution for existing spectrum - are major steps in the common evolution of GSM and TDMA, that will enable users to access services in both networks - and true global roaming. Ericsson has most recently demonstrated its EDGE technology at the CeBIT '99 exhibition last month. For latest press release on EDGE see: http://www.ericsson.se/pressroom/Archive/1999Q1/19990318-0004.html Ericsson is ideally positioned to support any operator anywhere to migrate to 3G systems - regardless of technology heritage or technology choice. Ericsson will be offering 3G systems based on WCDMA, cdma2000, and EDGE - being the only supplier with a complete portfolio for second and third generation systems. Ericsson is also in the lead in other Asian countries, Europe as well as other continents when these start to implement 3G systems. The company already leads the way in Europe with its UMTS offerings - the European name for WCDMA - with four experimental systems already up and running. This enables operators early WCDMA experience to get a head start when introducing 3G. Ericsson continues to strongly advocate market-driven standardization of 3G technologies with co-existence of technologies best suited for each individual operator and its differing needs. By combining its strength in mobility and continuing to further embrace IP technology, Ericsson's objective is to provide users with anywhere, anytime access.