Cover Story
 

Cell Phone Tie-Up

- continued from the cover
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 Mitsubishi Electric president and CEO (now chairman) Ichiro Taniguchi (second from right), Toshiba president and CEO Tadashi Okamura (second from left) and fellow executives cast their lots together in 3G mobile phones.
The new generation of mobile telephones combines Internet connectivity with advances in high-speed, large-volume data transmission. That combination allows for a plethora of multimedia services, including real-time music and video. Another feature of 3G mobile telecommunications is global roaming. Users can make and receive calls on their cell phones anywhere in the world.
   3G cellular telephones already are available from Mitsubishi Electric and from other manufacturers. But usersand service providers are just nowbeginning to tap the potential of the new format. By moving aggressively now, Mitsubishi Electricand Toshiba can shape the future direction of mobiletelecommunications.

Joint strengths
Both partners have strong track records in the cellular standards employed in the world's principal markets. And both companies are leaders in video compression,data encryption and other pertinent technologies.
   In April, Mitsubishi Electricand Toshiba began joint work on a handset that will be compatible with Japanese and European standards for mobile telephony and that will support a full range of multimedia functions. The partners are exploring possibilities for broadening their technological collaboration into joint product development and marketing in Europe, China and other markets.
   Mitsubishi Electric and Toshiba's collaboration is part of an industrywide trend in the information technology sector. The escalating cost of developing leading-edge technologies in that sector is nudging even the largest competitors into strategic alliances.

Partnering around
Other partnerships for Mitsubishi Electric in information technology include collaborations with Intel Corporation and Hitachi, Ltd. Mitsubishi Electric is working with Intel in developing cellular chipsets for 3G mobile telephones.
   Semiconductor devices also are the subject of Mitsubishi Electric's collaboration with Hitachi. The two companies are in negotiations to merge operations in system large-scale integration (LSI) devices. System LSIs are chips that contain multiple functions that formerly resided on separate chips.
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