Korea-Japan Top Telecom Giants Join Forces... SKT and NTT Docomo Alliance

Joint Production and Investment in Metaverse Content
6G Technology R&D and Standardization Collaboration
Wave Explores Entry Strategies into Japan

Yu Young-sang, President of SKT (left), and Motoyuki Ii, President of NTT Docomo (right), along with executives from both companies, are posing for a commemorative photo after signing an agreement at the Walkerhill Hotel in Seoul on the 18th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-sun] SK Telecom has joined hands with Japan's top mobile carrier NTT Docomo. They have formed a strategic partnership to collaborate in three major areas: metaverse, telecommunications infrastructure, and media business. SK's ICT family, including Content Wave and SK Hynix, will also participate, which is expected to strengthen the synergy of cooperation between the two companies.

SK Telecom announced on the 21st that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NTT Docomo for ICT business cooperation. Key executives from both companies, including SKT CEO Yoo Young-sang and NTT Docomo President Moto Yuki Ii, held a signing ceremony on the 18th at the Walkerhill Hotel in Seoul.

Joint Production and Investment in Metaverse Content

SKT and NTT Docomo agreed to cooperate in content, technology, and service areas to advance their respective metaverse services. The two companies are considering jointly producing metaverse content. For example, they plan to co-produce K-pop and J-pop content to be applied to both services. In particular, they will discuss jointly securing intellectual property (IP) rights for popular content such as games and animations in both Korea and Japan, as well as jointly investing in technology companies such as metaverse content providers (CPs) and extended reality (XR) device manufacturers.

The two companies will operate a regular consultative body for metaverse cooperation. In the short term, they will share service and technical know-how, and in the long term, they will discuss connecting their services and conducting joint marketing.

Once their metaverse services are connected, Japanese users will be able to watch volumetric concerts of K-pop singers broadcast on ifland through NTT Docomo’s service. Additionally, ifland users will be able to visit major Japanese cities implemented in NTT Docomo’s service, enabling a shared service experience.

Collaboration for 6G Technology R&D and Standardization

SKT and NTT Docomo will also collaborate in next-generation communication networks such as 6G. They agreed to jointly research key technologies of 5G, 5G Evolution (an advanced stage of 5G), and 6G, and to establish technical standards together. Through this, they plan to cooperate so that the application cases and key requirements from customer and operator perspectives for 6G will be reflected in global standardization organizations and the industry, preparing for the '6G era' together.

In particular, they will secure technologies related to open radio access networks and virtual radio access networks, which will become prominent in 6G. They will innovate mobile network architecture into cloud environments and jointly develop transmission network technologies. Open radio access networks apply open standards between base station radio signal processing equipment and digital signal processing equipment to support interoperability between equipment from different manufacturers. Virtual radio access networks implement the digital signal processing functions of base stations as software on general server hardware instead of base station equipment.

The two companies will also jointly promote energy-saving solutions and the introduction and operation of high-efficiency communication equipment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. SKT and SK Hynix are members of the 'AION Global Forum,' a global next-generation communication standards consortium led by the NTT Group. The AION Global Forum includes over 100 big tech companies, universities, and research institutes worldwide. SKT plans to secure next-generation transmission network technologies through the forum in cooperation with NTT Docomo, while SK Hynix will collaborate on next-generation semiconductor technology research.

Wave Explores Entry into the Japanese Market

Content Wave’s online video service (OTT) 'Wave' is pioneering ways to enter the Japanese media market. The two companies will pursue strategic investments and cooperation in content production and distribution to target the global media market. They are discussing ways for their OTT services to create synergy, such as jointly producing numerous original contents like dramas and variety shows to be exclusively provided in Korea and Japan.

If Korean Wave content is provided to Japan, Wave will open overseas distribution channels, and NTT Docomo can expect an increase in subscribers, creating a win-win cooperation structure. SKT CEO Yoo Young-sang emphasized, "Through cooperation with NTT Docomo in future ICT fields, we will create tangible results that lead global ICT innovation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.