DoCoMo finds its way to San Jose

NTT DoCoMo, Japan’s leading wireless operator, is forming DoCoMo Capital, a venture fund to be based in San Jose, and to invest mainly in U.S venture companies that develop “advanced mobile communication technologies.”

Here‘s the release:

NTT DoCoMo to Establish Investment Subsidiary in California

TOKYO, JAPAN, May 9, 2005 — NTT DoCoMo, Inc. announced that it will establish a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary, named DoCoMo Capital, Inc., to invest in venture companies that develop advanced mobile communication technologies.

The subsidiary will take stakes in venture companies, mainly in the United States, to support their development of innovative technologies. Through these investments, DoCoMo intends to shorten development time, lower its research and development costs and expand its opportunities for developing mobile services and technologies.

Based in San Jose, California, the subsidiary is scheduled to begin operating on July 1, 2005.

About NTT DoCoMo
NTT DoCoMo is the world’s leading mobile communications company, serving more than 50 million customers. The company offers a wide variety of leading-edge mobile multimedia services, including i-mode�, which provides e-mail and Internet access to over 44 million subscribers as the world’s most popular mobile Internet service, and FOMA�, launched in 2001 as the world’s first 3G mobile service based on W-CDMA. In addition to wholly owned subsidiaries in Europe and North America, the company is expanding its global reach through strategic alliances with mobile and multimedia service providers in Asia-Pacific and Europe. NTT DoCoMo is listed on the Tokyo (9437), London (NDCM), and New York (DCM) stock exchanges. For more information, visit www.nttdocomo.com.

i-mode and FOMA are trademarks or registered trademarks of NTT DoCoMo, Inc. in Japan and other countries.

NTT DoCoMo’s FOMA service is only available to subscribers in Japan