NEC Aims for Australia’s 5G Market in 2021

Electronics maker NEC Corp. aims to enter the ultrahigh-speed 5G communications technology market in Australia as early as next year.

The Australian government has kicked China’s Huawei Technologies Co. out of the 5G market due to security concerns, opening a hole in the market that had been dominated by the Chinese giant and two northern European rivals.

Japanese and Australian government leaders have agreed to cooperate in the field of 5G. In June, NEC Australia appointed a former high-ranking Australian government official in the telecommunications field as its chairman.

Also In June, NEC agreed with Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. to jointly develop 5G base stations, gunning for a 20 percent share in the global 5G base station market in 2030.

These factors “are giving us a very strong tailwind,” Mitsuhiro Murooka, president and chief executive officer of NEC Australia Pty., said in an interview.

NEC has already started working to enter the Australian 5G market. “We hope that there will be some development next year or the year after,” Murooka said.

“We want to explore new markets” including the field of 5G by utilizing the former official’s connections”, Murooka said.

 “Australia has such vast land. It is also eager for innovation,” Murooka said, stressing that the Australian unit will contribute to the achievement of the target.

From:  https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/08/03/business/tech/nec-australia-5g-market/#.XyjB4ZYzbIU