Why it matters

In recent years, various social issues have come to the fore: rapid increase in the global population, growing severity of natural disasters, worsening of food supply and environmental problems, and in Japan, low birthrates and an aging population are leading to a rapid shrinking of the working-age population and shortage of labor. To solve these problems, significant social and economic transformations are being demanded in every society and economy, and the advancement of digital transformation utilizing ICT (Information and Communications Technology) is required in every situation.

What can be accomplished

As a leader in digital transformation, we will act and contribute to helping resolve the social challenges unique to each country. For example, the declining birthrate and aging population, proper education, equitable healthcare, regional economic development, and long-term value through technology for the next generations.

Future vision

The NTT Group is committed to contributing to the development of society by acknowledging diverse cultures, and thus we will contribute to solving social issues by connecting people, goods, and cultures, including communities, nations, and society, while promoting high ethical standards, diversity, and inclusion in fair and equitable ways, and work towards creating a better workplace through powerful and new digital technologies.

Business Activity　16
Promoting the B2B2X Model

Our commitment

As a leader in digital transformation, we will act and contribute to helping resolve the social challenges unique to each country For example, the declining birthrate and aging population, proper education, equitable healthcare, regional economic development, and long-term value through technology for the next generations

Our objective

Generate \600 billion in B2B2X revenue by 2023

Policies and Concepts

In recent years, various social issues have come to the fore: rapid increase in the global population, growing severity of natural disasters, worsening of food supply and environmental problems, and in Japan, low birthrates and an aging population are leading to a rapid shrinking of the working-age population and shortage of labor. To solve these problems, significant social and economic transformations are being demanded in every society and economy, and the advancement of digital transformation utilizing ICT (Information and Communications Technology) is required in every situation.

Collaborating with companies in different industries and local governments as Your Value Partner, the NTT Group has been applying its management resources and capabilities, including human resources, research and development, and the ICT base to promote digital transformation and resolve social issues.

Going forward, we will seek to make a greater contribution to society based on our awareness that promoting the B2B2X business model that constitutes one of the pillars of our medium-term management strategy will be particularly effective.

Organization for Implementation

The NTT Group has made promotion of the B2B2X business model one of the pillars of our medium-term management strategy and has been taking action by establishing a B2B2X Strategy Committee with the president as chairman to facilitate Group collaboration while expanding projects.

We are also deepening discussion about future deployment of the B2B2X business model at regularly held Board of Directors meetings and reporting on progress at general meetings of shareholders.

What is the B2B2X model?

B2B2X is a business model aimed at resolving social issues by creating new value through collaboration with various partners.

This business model aims to provide our partner's customers (users) with new value by combining the industry expertise and customer platforms of our partners with the NTT Group's "data services" and "data management technology."

Development of B2B2X business

The model is being developed as an All NTT Group initiative in areas like (1) Advancing industry value chains (2) Providing better customer service (3) Utilization of mobile data (4) Community-based service and urban development.

Facilitating collaboration with partners

^※1 Industry One, Inc.: Company providing cross-industry DX solutions, established as joint venture with Mitsubishi

Research and Development to Promote the B2B2X Model

Promoting the B2B2X business model is a central pillar of the NTT Group's initiatives contributing to the realization of a smart society. In the B2B2X model, instead of providing services to customers directly, the NTT Group supports service providers by offering ICT tools such as AI and IoT, to which various values are added before being delivered to customers. In addition, the NTT Group has been working to create B2B2X models with many partner companies and local governments. We will further develop them and advance a model that uses digital services and data management.

Business Activity　17
Protection and respect for intellectual property

Our commitment

As a leader in digital transformation, we will act and contribute to helping resolve the social challenges unique to each country For example, the declining birthrate and aging population, proper education, equitable healthcare, regional economic development, and long-term value through technology for the next generations

Our objective

Intellectual Property Management Our Approach to Intellectual Property

The business activities of the NTT Group are sustained by products and services derived from the results of our aggressive R&D. For this reason, we believe that appropriate protection and utilization of intellectual property generated by R&D is vital for the NTT Group to achieve continuous growth, which in turn will enable us to continue contributing to our customers and society at large. We strive to protect the intellectual property of the NTT Group and promote activities that respect the intellectual property of others in every aspect of our business activities.

System of Intellectual Property Management

NTT protects the results of its R&D to maintain its competitive edge but at the same time makes its intellectual property available to a wider audience by licensing technologies that would contribute to the development of industries and businesses as well as standardized technologies that are already used in society.

Under the leadership of the NTT Intellectual Property Center, NTT has established policies for intellectual property activities involving the entire NTT Group and also provides support and coordination for the use and management of intellectual properties, aggregates the opinions within the Group on the intellectual property system and disseminates information outside the Group.

Protection of Third Party Intellectual Property

In order to prevent the infringement of domestic and overseas third party rights, NTT examines the third party rights of technologies used in our business at every step from the early stage of research and development up to the provision of the developed technologies to Group companies. NTT also strives to enhance the Group's compliance with intellectual property laws and regulations in Japan and abroad and mitigate potential business risks by sharing among the Group companies information on system amendments, and trends concerning intellectual property including disputes and court cases.

External Utilization of R&D Outcomes

IP Open Access Declaration Against COVID-19

Recognizing the need to contain the spread of\ COVID-19, the NTT Group expressed its consistent support for the IP Open Access Declaration Against COVID-19 in May 2020 and declared that it will "not assert any patent, utility model, design or copyright (hereinafter referred to as the "Intellectual Property Rights") against any individual or other entity during the period starting with the date of this declaration and ending on the date on which the World Health Organization declares that the COVID-19 outbreak no longer constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, with respect to activities whose sole purpose is stopping the spread of COVID-19, such as diagnosis, prevention, containment, and treatment of COVID-19." NTT discloses its licensing policy and procedures along with detailed information on its R&D activities and technological licenses.

Formulating and Advancing Our Intellectual Property Strategy

The NTT Intellectual Property Center is NTT Group's core organization for managing intellectual property. The Center aims to secure competitive advantages by proactively and appropriately protecting and managing intellectual property rights (i.e., patents), or internal expertise, from the results of R&D, the source of all business activities.

NTT aims to share the benefits of its R&D by broadly licensing out its technologies that help advance industry, as well as technologies that have been standardized and can be used throughout society. When deploying the results of R&D in their operations, each company in NTT Group respects the intellectual property rights of other companies.

Our intellectual property strategy forms the basis of these activities, and together with our business strategy and R&D strategy, we are aiming to achieve the NTT Group's vision by taking a three-pronged approach to formulating and advancing our medium-term business strategy: (1) developing strategic intellectual property rights, (2) managing risks, and (3) utilizing our intellectual property.

Intellectual Property Portfolio

The results of R&D, which plays a major role in the creation of intellectual property for NTT Group, has translated into ownership of approximately 18,000 patents around the world.

The NTT Intellectual Property Center is not only responding to NTT Group's global business by strengthening overseas patent applications, but also working to obtain rights to a wide range of energy reduction technologies, such as photonics-electronics convergence technologies that will advance carbon neutrality, which IOWN aims to achieve by FY2040.

Open & Closed Strategy (Initiatives related to Standard Essential Patents)

IOWN will not be achieved via a limited number of companies whose core business is information and communications technology. In fact, companies and organizations in various fields active around the world have gathered at the IOWN Global Forum to discuss use cases and technical specifications for making IOWN a reality. In these discussions, it is important to clarify open (cooperative) and closed (competitive) areas while working toward the same goal. In open areas, for example, it is essential to define technology standards to achieve stable communication between devices from different vendors (standardization).

While NTT laboratories play a central role in proposing NTT technologies as standards, the NTT Intellectual Property Center is working to enhance its Standard Essential Patents (SEP) in coordination with these activities.

SEPs are patents that must be used in the manufacture and sale of products and provision of services that conform to certain standards. The NTT Intellectual Property Center provides a secure platform for handling standardized technology rights by participating in and establishing patent pools, whereby companies and organizations in collective possession of SEPs manage patent royalties and other conditions, thereby maintaining relationships of trust with other companies and contributing to the safe and secure business operations of NTT Group.

Reinforce and Globalize Research and Development Policies and Concepts

As ICT companies leading the world, the NTT Group recognizes R&D as a material issue that gives Group companies their competitive edge. R&D supports the digital transformation of our customers and lifestyle transformations tailored to individuals, and the R&D department works with operating companies to develop new technologies that provide the wellspring for new value creation in a variety of domains to enhance the NTT Group's R&D, a pillar of our medium-term management strategy.

The NTT Group seeks to overcome numerous problems involving safety, disaster readiness, and the improvement of productivity through R&D and, as a result, strengthen industrial competitiveness and resolve social issues. Since ICT is applied in a variety of fields, we are forging partnerships with counterparts in wide-ranging industries as we pursue our R&D initiatives.

IOWN GLOBAL FORUM Linking Companies and Academic Institutions Across the Globe

Organization for Implementation

The NTT Group's R&D activities focus on making the IOWN concept a reality, as well as basic research and applied research. Basic research serves as the backbone of telecommunications, such as basic and component technologies related to services and networks, while applied research is conducted by operating companies and is closely related to their respective businesses. These R&D activities are undertaken by NTT's IOWN Integrated Innovation Center, Service Innovation Laboratory Group, Information Network Laboratory Group, and Science and Core Technology Laboratory Group.

Also, we promote general producer activities, in which we formulate marketing and business plans and forge alliances so that the results of research by NTT laboratories can be transformed into Group businesses. In these general producer activities, we seek to develop business in a timely manner by combining the wide-ranging basic technologies of NTT laboratories with external technologies in collaboration with Group companies and with various other companies to create new services. In order for innovation to continually be an important driver of the NTT Group well into the future, we will aim to contribute to the realization of a sustainable society by promoting innovations for social issues. These efforts will include patent applications and the publication of scientific papers.

Reinforce and Globalize Research and Development

R&D to make the IOWN concept a reality

Promoting Other Cutting-Edge Research

Why IOWN is essential

The development of digital technology has broughtabout a number of technological innovations, such as ultra-high definition images, but we believe that we must change our mindset to achieve further evolution.

With IOWN, we believe it is important to try to grasp phenomena and information as they are through a more diverse set of values and perceptions, as opposed to filtering them through human-only values. Dr. Jakob von Uexkull, a German biologist, proposed the concept of the "self-centered world" ("Umwelt" in German), which states that all living things have a species- specific perceptual system, and that each has a world based on its own species-specific perception and acts as its own subject. The IOWN concept is based on the idea that different subjects see things in different ways, and that the information being conveyed and the processing method will vary according to the values of each subject. Thus, it aims to convey and process every bit of information in accordance with the values of each subject.

While dramatically low latency, enormous bandwidth, and very small latency fluctuations are required to make these new ideas a reality, the current internet is reaching its limits in terms of both transmission and processing capacities. Furthermore, power consumption continues to increase in tandem with the enormous amount of information being processed, and the increase in CO2 emissions has become a serious global issue. NTT Group's vision of a high-capacity, low-latency, low-power-consumption infrastructure that can handle information as-is requires an end-to-end, fullstack redesign and optimization that breaks away from individually designed layers, from networking to computing. The key to this is "photoelectric merging" technology. Conventionally, optical signals and electronic signals have had their roles completely separated into "transmission" and "processing," respectively, and the task of converting the two types of signals is inefficient and consumes a lot of power. If we tightly integrate optics and electronics, we can apply optical technology to the entire system, down to the processor level, and we can rethink the architecture (structure) from a full stack perspective.

The advantages of IOWN

I think the optics-related expertise that NTT has accumulated over the years is a big advantage. What everyone is probably most familiar with is internet connection services using fiber optic cables, but NTT has long been researching the possibility of not only using fiber optic cables as a transmission medium, but using optics as a basis for transmission equipment and information processing. The results of these research projects are being put on a development track that brings them closer to commercialization, with the goal being practical applications. In terms of recent achievements, the core of "photoelectric merging technology" is the ability to perform optical-electrical and electrical- optical conversion at ultra-high speeds and with ultra-low power consumption. In LSI, the input/output (I/O) consumes the most electricity, and the impact of replacing this with light is quite significant. Moreover, with electricity, power consumption increases rapidly as the distance over which signals are transmitted increases, but with light, power consumption does not increase very quickly. Thus, by utilizing light through photoelectric merging technology, it is possible to achieve not only ultra-high speeds, an original characteristic of light, but also ultra-low power consumption. A typical example is the optical transistor developed by NTT in 2019, the first in the world to combine ultra- high speeds with ultra-low power consumption. A transistor is a conversion device that can output an electrical signal in its proper form by providing it with a control signal. Converting signals is called switching. Conventional light-switching devices are huge and cost several hundred billion yen, but now that optical transistors have been created, they have been reduced to the size of a piece of chewing gum. In addition, the research and development of optical transistors involves not only signal processing technology, but also the creation of optical modulators. This requires know-how regarding stabilization at high accuracy so as not to disturb the spectrum of a certain wavelength, which is an analog technology that is part of a cottage industry. The fact that we are now able to connect long distances optically is largely due to utilization of our technology. To cope with the increase in data volume and power consumption, a structural evolution from electronic processing to optical transmission is essential, and the breakthrough in the technology supporting this structural evolution hinges on the higher precision, smaller size, and lower cost of optical transistors. Therein lies NTT's advantage.

Anticipated business model

IOWN will be available in a variety of domains, but here are two easy-to-understand scenarios.

First, let's consider the interior of a data center, disaggregated computing. A personal computer has a similar structure, but a server has an interface, a CPU, memory, and storage. The current trend is for the CPU to issue instructions, temporarily store information in memory, and then store the information resulting from its calculations in storage.

The CPUs used to be run by electrical signals, but by directly connecting accelerators such as GPUs and DPUs via light and linking them with different wavelengths, it is no longer necessary for each server to have its own CPUs and memory. CPUs are located in one casing and memory in another, and connecting them optically makes it possible to create a situation in which it appears as if a very large amount of CPUs and memory are installed on a single server.

Disaggregated computing

This allows for a scalable computing infrastructure with ultra-low power consumption, high-speed processing, and the ability to add as many parts as required. One potential business model in this case would involve selling optical transistors. In addition to the optical transistors themselves, products that incorporate photoelectric merging technology and optical modulators into computer motherboards and semiconductor packages are also a possibility. Essentially, we would be selling key components. Next, we will expand the scope somewhat to include all-photonics networks, which utilize optics between networks, and areas outside the data center. Optical transmission technology used in the core of relay systems that connect cities and in metro networks that extend throughout cities can be expanded to the end user's neighborhood, which would allow for flexible configuration of ultra- high-capacity optical paths, such as a "one wavelength per person" model, for each application. It would be like having a dedicated, on-demand, one-toone optical line with no video compression and almost no delay in transmission and reception. optical paths, can be used to reduce power consumption.

APNs could be used for the mobile fronthaul portion that links base stations and mobile antennas. In urban areas, the population changes depending on whether it is day or night, so traffic volumes will inevitably vary. For this reason, load balancing, which dynamically constructs optical paths, can be used to reduce power consumption. APNs can also be used as lines linking data centers. These days, it is difficult to set up large data centers that require enormous amounts of power.

In the future, small- and medium-sized data centers will be dispersed over a broad area, and it will be necessary to connect these distributed data centers using light so that they can operate at a level comparable to that of large-scale data centers. Large-scale data centers require enormous amounts of electricity, but if spread out, they can also make use of renewable energy generated close to their locations, thus enabling local production for local consumption of energy. Potential business models for cases in which APNs are provided include: acting as an infrastructure service provider, such as providing mobile fronthaul and networks between data centers; a data center business that provides distributed data centers connected by APNs; and a product business selling optical transceivers to be installed in data centers edges.

All-photonics network (APN) characteristics

What are some use cases?

IOWN is an innovative concept based on light that communicates and processes things as-is and helps to create a new smart society with low energy consumption in a sustainable manner that is not attainable with our current internet. Some use cases that are anticipated at this stage include the following.

While (1) providing interconnect solutions for data center operators and (2) providing mobile networks for mobile operators have already been introduced, (3) providing networks for events (live broadcasts, cloud-based e-sports broadcasts) is another potential use case. We have already conducted demonstration tests for cloud-based e-sports event broadcasts. Competitive games via the cloud are fought in real time, and it will be essential to exchange large amounts of 8k video data with a delay of less than 20 ms. A delay of a few milliseconds compared to a delay 10 times that amount will result in a different attack timing. It is impossible to fight within a game in an environment where the timing of attacks is off due to delay. The delay in the demonstration test was 20 ms, but we are making efforts to lower this to a few milliseconds, and we are currently developing a system that can control the delay in 1-μs increments to enable synchronization.

Future schedule and milestones

We hope to conduct early demonstrations of these use cases, receive feedback from customers, and further refine the IOWN technology. Then, starting around 2020, we have been proceeding with field demonstrations to users and areas that need advanced services, such as smart cities and critical infrastructure. Around fiscal 2022, we will roll out services, though it will still be limited to specific uses and areas. After 2026, we will expand the service nationwide by connecting areas where it has already been implemented. Also, an important event coming up in the near future is the Osaka Kansai Expo 2025. We hope to convey a part of our IOWN-based worldview in an easy-to-understand manner, combining some of the IOWN technologies we have mentioned thus far with existing technologies as well. In doing so, we hope to present a new kind of value through partnerships with various companies and organizations, which will lead to these technologies subsequently being implemented throughout society.

IOWN Expansion Roadmap

Business Activity　18
Contribution to the revitalization of local communities and economies

Our commitment

As a leader in digital transformation, we will act and contribute to helping resolve the social challenges unique to each country For example, the declining birthrate and aging population, proper education, equitable healthcare, regional economic development, and long-term value through technology for the next generations

Our objective

Contributing to the Vitalization of Regional Societies and Economies

Advancing Personalization by Supporting the Transformation of Lifestyles

We support customers as they transform ever-diversifying lifestyles by providing personal solutions centered on DOCOMO that closely align with individual needs. Number of cell phone subscribers totaled 84.75 million in fiscal 2021.

In terms of service, we are enhancing electronic payment and contents while utilizing AI and big data to improve communication with every customer.

Promoting Digital Transformation

We are raising operational efficiency by introducing robotic process automation (RPA)*1. The operational process has been adopted in approximately 2,900 cases within the NTT Group as of the end of June 2020. We are also recommending the use of RPA among our customers, and more than around 6,500 of them have adopted the process as of the end of June 2020. We also sought to advance our Group management by actively introducing a unified enterprise resource planning (ERP)*2 system for our personnel, finance, and procurement operations.

Establishment of the NTT Group Web Accessibility Policy

The NTT Group is working to ensure and improve the accessibility of its websites for a wide spectrum of customers, including senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Specifically, the Group established the NTT Group Web Accessibility Policy. The policy for official websites of the Group companies with head office functions in Japan is set according to JIS X 8341- 3:2016*2 and each works to comply*3 with Level AA.

^※2 JIS X 8341-3:2016: "Guidelines for older persons and persons with disabilities--information and telecommunications equipment, software and services-- Part 3: Web content" of Japanese Industrial Standards

^※3 Refers to compliance with the description defined in the "Compliance Performance Announcement Guidelines for JIS X 8341-3:2016.March 2016 Edition (published on March 22, 2016)" of the Web Accessibility Infrastructure Committee, Info-communication Access Council. This means that we have established and disclosed an accessibility policy and confirmed that the pages fulfilled all the requirements through the tests implemented and based on JIS X 8341-3:2016.

User-Friendly Service Lineup

We offer a broad range of discount services for various users, including senior citizens and persons with special needs, to facilitate access to ICT services.

Special discounts on dedicated lines for educational facilities (NTT East and NTT West)

Since January 2001, NTT East and NTT West have offered special fees for schools on FLET'S services suitable for using the Internet at a fixed sum in an effort to promote educational use of the Internet.

Discounts on mobile phone use for persons with special needs (NTT DOCOMO)

Policies and Concepts to Pursue Customer Satisfaction

The NTT Group serves various customers, from general consumers to corporate customers, providing a broad range of products and services.

Its main business fields, the telecommunications and ICT industries, continue to innovate, producing new products and services. Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets continue to evolve almost daily, giving rise to a number of new services utilizing the NTT Group's network. At the same time, with the evolution of technology and services, the amount of information needed to use them has increased, and this has also increased opportunities for us to receive various confirmations, inquiries, feedback and requests from customers with regard to device malfunctions and questions about various fees and services. The NTT Group believes that resolving customers' concerns or questions about the services they use and maintaining a high level of satisfaction for all customers will foster a relationships of trust with customers and lead to the acquisition of new customers.

Organization for Implementation

The NTT Group companies have built a system for making operational improvements that will lead to reductions in the time taken to respond to customers, enhancing products and services, and influencing development based on the voice of customers received through surveys, the Customer Services Center, and other departments. In turn, we work toward developing and providing services closely in tune with the voice of our customers. Specifically, we work continuously to improve our year-over-year results for the KPIs of the reduction in waiting and customer service times at DOCOMO shops, the number of improvements made based on suggestions from customers, and the response rate of our call centers, which will give rise to a positive cycle of improvement.

The NTT Group will keep on making efforts to raise the level of customer satisfaction, including service quality and on-site responsiveness required by customers, in conjunction with the business operations of individual NTT Group companies

Main Initiatives

Customer Contact Points

Each Group company has set up a call center that responds to customer inquiries on products and services, requests for repairs, and complaints. Major call centers of the NTT Group receive over 180,000 calls each day and endeavor to respond promptly to customers. Each call center has set its own targets aimed at improving response rates and enhancing the quality of responses and support. They also engage in various efforts including telephone response competitions and training to enhance skills for providing better responses.

COVID-19 Outbreak and Support for Customers

In March 2020, NTT Group companies announced their policy of extending payment dates upon request from customers facing difficulties in paying for services on time, and this policy was extended through to the end of November 2021.

Recognizing that the government's stay home request created an environment that made it difficult for customers to use their d POINTS, NTT DOCOMO decided to reactivate d POINTS that expired between March and May 2020 and award them to customers, effectively extending their expiration dates.

In light of schools implementing remote classes and online education, a partial waiver of data communication fees was announced to support the use of smartphones for online learning. NTT Group companies have also been supporting telework, education, and health by setting up customer contact points and providing some services free of charge as initiatives. At the same time, the NTT Group has been using the way cell phones connect to analyze demographic changes caused by government policies addressing the spread of COVID-19 and providing information to central and local governments and the media.

Reflecting the Voice of Customers

The NTT Group listens to the voice of its customers, including their opinions and requests, through its call centers. Each Group company has constructed a system for reflecting the voice of customers in making operational upgrades and improving and developing products and services, and they are making an active effort in related activities as well.

For example, NTT Communications collects the voice of customers through various contact points in an effort to reinforce initiatives for enhancing services and improving operational processes. This includes not only annual surveys, but also soliciting customer feedback at the time of application and during various support processes.

For more information on these initiatives, please refer to each company's website, Sustainability Report, and other materials.

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  NTT DOCOMO

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  NTT Communications

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  NTT EAST

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  NTT WEST

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  NTT DATA

Group Companies