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News Release January 28, 2014 Osaka Government Tourism Bureau Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Kinki District Transport Bureau NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE WEST CORPORATION Regional Headquarters Kansai NTT Broadband Platform, Inc. Free Wi-Fi Service “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” to be Launched For Foreign Tourists Across Osaka Prefecture Starting January 29, Osaka Government Tourism Bureau will provide free Wi-Fi service “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” for tourists. The service will be available in tourist facilities, public transportation, hotels, restaurants, etc. in Osaka Prefecture. In an effort to attract more users, customer-attracting service “Osaka Enjoy Rally” will also be launched in March. The free Wi-Fi service will be enhanced even further through collaboration among Kansai Regional Headquarters of NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE WEST CORPORATION (hereinafter referred to as “NTT West”), NTT Broadband Platform, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as “NTTBP”), etc. With the aim of improving the service for tourists, “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” will be further expanded under the cooperation of Osaka Prefecture, Osaka City, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Kinki District Transport Bureau (hereinafter referred to as “Kinki District Transport Bureau”) , and other public and private sector organizations. 1. Objective In the fiscal year of 2012, approximately 2.03 million foreign tourists visited Osaka and that number is expected to rise to around 2.6 million in this fiscal year. With the growth of smartphones and tablets, it is becoming increasingly essential to create an environment where tourists can obtain useful tourist information, such as sightseeing spots, transportation, and the food culture of Osaka. According to a survey conducted by Japan National Tourism Organization,※1more than 90% of foreign tourists bring their own internet-capable devices to access the internet. While free Wi-Fi is becoming available in various locations, still many tourists are not fully satisfied with their internet connection. Under the circumstances, “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” will be introduced along with “Osaka Enjoy Rally” to resolve the dissatisfaction of tourists. The service will allow foreign tourists to actively share their travel experiences online with people all over the world in a timely manner. With the aim of receiving 6.5 million foreign tourists in 2020, further efforts will be made to increase the number of tourists visiting Osaka. ※1 Japan National Tourist Organization (March, 2013). “A research report on foreign travelers visited the TIC in FY 2012” 2. Summary (1) Free Wi-Fi service “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” for foreign tourists Free Wi-Fi will be provided in Kansai International Airport, Osaka Municipal Subway, private railroads, tourist facilities, hotels, commercial facilities, shopping streets, restaurants, stores, etc., with the goals of offering useful information for tourists and allowing them to share their travel experiences online. “Osaka Free Wi-Fi will be deployed and expanded through collaboration among venue owners, Wi-Fi service operators, such as NTTBP and NTT MEDIASUPPLY CO., LTD. (hereinafter referred to as NTT MEDIAS), and service improvement partners, including NTT West. In addition, efforts will be made along with other existing Wi-Fi operators to enhance the popularity of the service. Available locations, maximum available time, usage fee, etc. Available Maximum Usage Main operator locations available time Fee Public transportation (Kansai International No time restrictions Airport, Osaka (i) Osaka Free Wi-Fi NTTBP, etc. (30 minutes per Municipal Subway, session x N times)※3 Free of private railroads※2), charge etc. Max. one hour Tourist sites, hotels, (ii)Osaka Free Wi-Fi Lite NTT MEDIAS (15 minutes per stores, etc. session x 4 times)※4 ※2 Keihan Electric Railway Co., Ltd., Nankai Electric Railway Co., Ltd., and Kintetsu Corporation. ※3 Each session is up to 30 minutes in length. Authentication is required again to use the service. From the second time on, users only need to accept the security alert to connect to the internet. ※4 Each session is up to 15 minutes in length. Authentication is required again to use the service. From the second time on, users only need to click the connect button to connect to the internet. With regard to “(i) Osaka Free Wi-Fi” service, NTTBP will plan to offer an Android application called “Japan Connected-free Wi-Fi”※5 to increase the convenience of using Wi-Fi (The app will be available in February, 2014). ※5 While free Wi-Fi services are available in various parts of the country, different venues require different SSIDs and authentication information. By registering the app, users will find that their device will automatically connect to free W-Fi without going through complicated procedures (No initial registration process will be required). ① Service area expansion The service area for “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” will be expanded through the cooperation of stores, facilities, and other venue owners. When the service launches on January 29, the free Wi-Fi will be available in about 42 locations (152 access points), such as public transportation, hotels, and restaurants. In addition, plans are underway to offer the service in about 56 additional locations (200 access points), including locations owned by supporting members of Osaka Government Tourism Bureau. Furthermore, beverage vending machines that offer free Wi-Fi connection will be deployed outdoors. For more information on the service area, please see Appendix 1 of the “Osaka Free Wi-Fi locations”. The Wi-Fi service will be deployed in 3,000 locations (8,000 access points) by December 2014 and will continue to be expanded. (2) Customer-attracting service “Osaka Enjoy Rally” A web portal called “Osaka Enjoy Rally” will be launched with the cooperation of TOWNNET ADVANCE Co., Ltd., aiming to increase the use of “Osaka Free Wi-Fi”. The portal will feature store information and special offers and will be available in five languages (English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Korean, and Thai) for foreign tourists, in addition to Japanese. Further, when users shop at a store or eat at a restaurant listed on the web portal, they all will have an opportunity to take advantage of special offers as well as a chance to win coupons, which will be available at member stores/restaurants, by participating in a game at the cash register. ① About “Osaka Enjoy Rally” Users will be able to access “Osaka Enjoy Rally” by connecting to the internet via “Osaka Free Wi-Fi”. The front page of the portal site will feature a store locator which will list all member stores/restaurants. These member stores will also offer “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” with the hope of attracting more foreign tourists and will be able to strengthen sales through the free Wi-Fi service. Stores/restaurants wishing to be listed on the site will have to pay the membership fees, and the proceeds will be used to expand the infrastructure of “Osaka Free Wi-Fi”. Under the new scheme, the infrastructure will be enhanced by utilizing independent revenue sources rather than revenue sources secured in advance. The target is to have 1,000 member stores by December 2014. (3) Disaster response In the event of disaster, “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” will be available without time restrictions.※6 ※6 (i)Osaka Free Wi-Fi: 30 minutes per session x N times (users will be able to use as much as they like) (ii)Osaka Free Wi-Fi Lite: 15 minutes per session x N times (users will be able to use as much as they like) (4) Collaborative promotion In order to promote the use of “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” and further expand its service area, promotional activities will be conducted through the website of Osaka Government Tourism Bureau “OSAKA-INFO”※7, and multilingual materials such as official guides, official maps, brochures, stickers, and posters will be created and distributed. ※7 OSAKA-INFO is a tourist information website run by Osaka Government Tourism Bureau. The website receives 47 million hits per year and is available in 6 languages, just like “Osaka Enjoy Rally”.(http://www.osaka-info.jp/) (5) Public-private joint efforts The Committee for the Promotion of Osaka Free Wi-Fi Development Plans has been set up by Osaka Prefecture, Osaka City, Kinki District Transport Bureau, and private enterprises. The aim of the committee is to expand and improve “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” through collaboration between the public and private sectors. For a list of the committee members, please see Appendix 2. 3. Launching date Free Wi-Fi service “Osaka Free Wi-Fi” will be launched on January 29, 2014. Customer-attracting service “Osaka Enjoy Rally” will be available from March 1, 2014 (applications to become a member store will be accepted from January 29). Further updates will be provided on the website of Osaka Government Tourism Bureau “OSAKA-INFO”. <Contact for inquires> NTT Broadband Platform, Inc. Market Strategy Department Mail: [email protected] Appendix1 : “Osaka Free Wi-F” Locations (as of January 28, 2014) Wi-Fi locations Number of Number of Locations Locations APs APs ●Kintetsu Corporation 34 Amami Onsen Nanten-en 1 1 OSAKA-NAMBA Station 5 35 Aqua-Bus 1 2 KINTETSU-NIPPOMBASHI Station 4 ●Commercial facilities 3 FUSE Station 5 36 TSUTAYA EBISUBASHI 1 4 ISHIKIRI Station 4 ●Hotels 5 OSAKA-ABENOBASHI Station 4 37 GRAMPUS inn OSAKA 1 6 TONDABAYASHI Station 3 38 Osaka Guesthouse Tennoji 1 7 KAWACHI-NAGANO Station 4 ●Stores 8 SHIN-ISHIKIRI Station 4 39 Forcise 1 ●Nankai Electric Railway Co., Ltd. 40 Kogetsu 1 9 NAMBA Station 9 41 Magic Stage 1 10 SHIN-IMAMIYA Station 4 42 Hard Rock Cafe 1 11 TENGACHAYA Station 6 Total 152 APs 12 SAKAIHIGASHI Station 4 13 SUMIYOSHITAISHA Station 4 14 SAKAI Station 6 15 MINATO Station 4 16 IZUMISANO Station 5 17 KONGO Station 4 18 KAWACHINAGANO Station 6 ●Keihan Electric Railway Co., Ltd.