Let’s start with the cloud. The English word “cloud” has come to express a network.  I mentioned the change from “owning” to “using.”  This refers to customers’ ability to use various services via a network whenever they want and as much as they want, without purchasing hardware, such as a server, or software.  Each NTT Group company is leveraging its unique characteristics and strengths through various collaborative efforts.

In addition to businesses for which we have mainly developed cloud services, NTT is also promoting use of the cloud in the public sector, as its importance was reinforced by the Great East Japan Earthquake.  For example, in government, we are promoting local-government clouds with the aim of making operations across multiple municipalities more efficient, and administrative clouds to make government services more convenient for users.  In the field of medical care, we have developed a cloud-type remote health consultation service called Hikari Health Consultation.  This service was first introduced in Tono City, Iwate Prefecture in 2008, and then expanded throughout Japan beginning last fall.  Meanwhile, in the field of education, an education-oriented cloud has been in use from the spring of last year to provide digital materials and hold classes using tablet devices in ten elementary and junior high schools throughout Japan.
Using the cloud will make it possible to inexpensively and rapidly analyze huge amounts of data, which are known as big data, that previously we had not been able to utilize.  This data might include users’ web search histories, data posted through social networking services (SNS), and data collected from various types of devices and sensors.  We expect such analysis of big data to create new value in many forms.  For example, we can envision the analysis of location information exchanged between mobile phones and base stations to reveal how people behave at the time of an earthquake or other natural disaster.  Such knowledge could be useful in disaster prevention planning.  This is just one example because analysis results could be used in various fields.  The potential for creating new value is infinite.

As you know, a shortage of electrical power has become an issue in our society in the wake of last year’s earthquake.  As an ICT operator that uses a considerable amount of power in our business operations, we have a social responsibility to reduce power consumption.  At the same time, we are working on ways of saving energy in society through the adept use of ICT. These efforts will help reduce the load on the environment.

With the spread of mobile terminals, we will be able to connect to a network anytime without any restrictions on time and place.  This spread will expand the ways in which the cloud is used in the corporate and public sectors that I touched upon earlier, and in the home as well, it will enable us to use various services in the kitchen, living room, etc.  For example, through the use of a power visualization service, we can cut electricity expenses by controlling home electric appliances from outside the home and monitoring electricity usage in real time.  We will also be able to provide remote medical and nursing care services to customers at home.  Recently, video services previously provided through high-speed optical lines have become available for viewing on mobile terminals.  In addition, to deepen family bonds, we are also working to develop services to create an ambience where family members who are apart can feel like they are in the same living room, by combining large screen TVs at homes with high-quality video and communications.

In order to provide the services I spoke about earlier, it is essential that fixed and mobile network services be combined in a seamless manner.  To that end, we are accelerating the deployment of a service environment in which users use wireless LAN (Wi-Fi^*2) connected to a high-speed optical line when indoors and a mobile network or public wireless LAN (Wi-Fi spot) when outdoors.  With respect to Wi-Fi spots in particular, we are expanding installation through collaboration with transit agencies as well as local convenience stores and commercial establishments.

With respect to remote medical care, while home medical care and home nursing care advance, we have started substantiation experiments in which local governments, hospitals, nursing facilities, and patients’ homes are being connected via networks and consultations are being conducted by collecting health data, such as a patient’s blood pressure, through a mobile terminal or similar avenue, while referencing past information such as consultation and prescription history.

First of all, responding to changes in the world in a timely manner is not as easy as it sounds.  In NTT’s R&D, some sort of drastic change is needed to respond to the times.  This year, I would like to see our R&D evolve on the basis of the keywords “software-oriented,” “speedy,” and “globally minded.”

Regarding “software-oriented,” we would like to accelerate service development and improve quality and security through software technology as our business areas expand. Currently, we are consolidating R&D organizations related to information processing technology and security technology that are scattered across multiple research labs and organizations, and strengthening research and development for software innovation and security.  With respect to “speedy,” we hope to accelerate service development to keep pace with world changes and meet market needs in a timely manner.  “Globally minded” includes not only efforts to increase overseas sales but also means keeping our eyes on overseas trends in markets and technologies to develop services from a global perspective.  For example, we will build an environment in which research and development can be conducted on the west coast of North America, where new services are constantly emerging.

Finally, we apologize for inconveniencing customers and others affected by NTT DOCOMO’s service malfunctions, which occurred on several occasions last year.  We will implement measures going forward to ensure that NTT is able to promptly respond to the explosive increase in smartphones, and take all necessary countermeasures to ensure the malfunction does not occur again.  In addition, based on the experience from the Great East Japan Earthquake, NTT Group will continue to work to build a disaster-resistant, safe and secure network and develop and provide services in both fixed and mobile communications.

• *2 Wi-Fi
  A brand name certifying interconnectivity among wireless LAN devices by the Wi-Fi Alliance.
  It is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. In this context, it indicates the Wi-Fi wireless LAN environment.