Au by KDDI

au by KDDI is the cell phone company run by the KDDI corporation. It is the 2nd largest Japanese cell phone service, with over 30,000,000 customers.

History

The company that would soon became “au by KDDI” began as a car phone network for Toyota and Kyocera. Kyocera decided to separate the phone service section and eventually formed the DDI Cellular group in 1992.

After NTT Docomo was in the process of taking the Japanese mobile phone industry by storm as one of the only major cell phone dealers, in 2000 KDDI (the eventual named of DDI Cellular after several mergers) decided to release “au” to compete in the cell phone service industry. “au by KDDI” experienced great success, though it has been unable to beat Docomo. It has still managed to become one of the leading cell phone service companies.

Overview

au by KDDI has been able to keep up in the Japanese market by releasing several phones that have been able to take advantage of GPS, EZone, the Internet and several other features that were quickly being used on the Japanese market. It has been able to keep up with modern technology, rather than come behind, and is constantly developing its own new technology which it showcases at the KDDI Designing Studio in Harajuku.

The company has provided several different service options including prepaid cell phone programs, flat fees and other rate changes that have allowed it to stay more than competitive in the cell phone service industry. It was also the first company to offer the EZ services (EZ web, EZ email, etc.) that have become relative staples in the Japanese cell phone world. The constant research into new technologies and various offerings by au by KDDI are what continue to keep it one of the leading Japanese mobile phone service providers in the country.

External Links

• Official Homepage, au by KDDI