Paris and Tokyo, November 6, 2012 – Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) is providing SOFTBANK-led Japanese mobile service provider Wireless City Planning Inc. (WCP) with a dramatically greater understanding of the impact of data service usage on its network performance, helping WCP deliver an exceptional mobile broadband experience to its customers.

With smartphone ownership in Japan growing by 43% in 2012[i], demand for mobile video, cloud gaming and other data services has exploded in the country.  In order to remain competitive, service providers must ensure that they meet their customers’ growing needs for bandwidth while maintaining the quality they expect. To do this, they need to understand how that demand affects their network.

With Alcatel-Lucent’s 9900 Wireless Network Guardian (WNG), WCP will be able to monitor service quality continually over its Advanced XGP (AXGP) mobile broadband network, ‘SOFTBANK 4G’; AXGP is based on technology developed in Japan that is highly compatible with TD-LTE, a popular 4G standard. Alcatel-Lucent is already a supplier for AXGP, one of the world’s first superfast LTE networks, which employs Alcatel-Lucent’s Internet protocol (IP) Service Router and Service Access Switch backhaul technology.

The WNG provides real-time insights on how every element of the network is performing under the growing data volume generated by the different mobile devices used by customers and by the applications and services they are accessing.

This constant delivery of network intelligence and subscriber analytics enables WCP to understand the level of quality its customers are receiving so that they can enhance delivery of video and Internet access, identify and prevent network issues and plan for future network deployments to further increase quality and customer satisfaction.

Yoshioki Chika, CTO of WCP said: “As our subscribers’ appetite for mobile broadband grows rapidly, Alcatel-Lucent is providing us with the network intelligence we need to continue to meet that demand with the quality that they expect, both now and in the future.”

Martin Jordy, head of Alcatel-Lucent in Japan said: “Traditional performance monitoring tools often fail to provide insight into the interactions between devices, networks and specific applications. Alcatel-Lucent’s 9900 Wireless Network Guardian helps mobile service providers truly understand how subscribers, their devices and applications interact with network elements and how that interaction impacts the network. As a result, subscribers’ experiences are improved, wherever customers are and by whatever device they are using.”

Alcatel-Lucent’s technology solution for Wireless City Planning

Under the agreement, Alcatel-Lucent will provide WCP with its 9900 WNG, as well as providing expertise in project management, integration, installation and commissioning. Alcatel-Lucent will also provide diagnostic services to assess the impact of various devices and applications on the network, and bring further insights into the adoption of best practices for delivering consistent performance and to avoid problems in the future. The company supported a trial of the service through to the end of September 2012 and commercial usage begun in October 2012.

About SOFTBANK CORP. and Wireless City Planning Inc.
SOFTBANK is a leading Internet company engaged in various businesses in the information industry, including mobile communications, broadband infrastructure, fixed-line telecommunications andInternet culture, SOFTBANK continuously strives to create synergies between various content and services within the Group.  Wireless City Planning Inc. is a SOFTBANK’s group company and provides networks utilizing AXGP.  For more information, please refer to http://www.softbank.co.jp/en/.

Alcatel-Lucent will demonstrate the Wireless Network Guardian at the Broadband Traffic Management Global Congress taking place 6-8 November at the Royal Garden Hotel in London.