TOKYO (AP) --
NTT DoCoMo will begin offering its hit "i-mode" wireless Internet service in the United States through its partner AT&T Wireless early next year, an executive at the Japanese carrier said Wednesday.
The service -- which allows users to exchange e-mail, check stock prices and find restaurant, movie and other information on cellphones -- will likely begin in the Seattle area and be expanded nationwide in a year or two, said Kiyoyuki Tsujimura, managing director overseeing global strategy.
AT&T Wireless will set up a subsidiary in May this year especially for i-mode service, set to start running by June or July, he said in an interview at Tokyo headquarters.
NTT DoCoMo bought a 16 percent stake in AT&T Wireless last year, as well as minority stakes in KPN Mobile N.V. of the Netherlands, Hutchison 3G U.K. Holdings, Taiwan's KG Telecom and Hutchison Telecom of Hong Kong in an effort to expand its business globally.
NTT DoCoMo is looking into acquiring additional stakes in Asia and remains very interested in the South Korean market, Tsujimura said, while refusing to mention specific companies.
I-mode fees in the United State will be similar to what the 20 million Japanese users pay on average, at $70 for voice and about $17 for i-mode transmission fees, but flat-rates are being considered for the American market, he said.
Tsujimura was confident i-mode would be a hit overseas.
"Cellphones in the United States and Europe are still like 13-inch black-and-white TV sets," he said, showing his folding i-mode phone. "There's a huge gap in technology. People see these color displays and are stunned."
Americans will be able to access a rich lineup of i-mode, such as sites for CNN news and Disney characters, Tsujimura said. I-mode sites now total about 40,000 in Japan.
NTT DoCoMo plans to be the first in the world to offer a more advanced form of wireless technology that will allow for video, audio and other heavy-duty transmissions.
A limited rollout in the Tokyo area is slated for May. Tsujimura said such technology is being planned for the United States by AT&T Wireless by the end of 2002 or 2003, using NTT DoCoMo technology.
