Curitel offers phone in Japan

Korea’s handset maker Curitel Communications Inc. said yesterday it will begin selling mobile phones jointly developed with KDDI Corp., Japan’s second-largest wireless operator, in Japan in November. The “A14059PT” model, with a sleek design and an alarm system for self-protection, will be the smallest mobile phone in Japan and only weighs 98 grams, lighter than any model in that country’s market. Curitel, a unit of the nation’s third-largest handset maker Pantech Group, agreed to develop the phone with KDDI in August for the Japanese firm’s high-speed “au” wireless services. At that time, Curitel agreed to sell the phones using a joint brand between au and Pantech. “The model has been designed to cater to Japanese customers after analyzing the Japanese market and consumers’ needs,” said Chung Jung-bong, a Curitel overseas marketing executive. For all of 2005, the Pantech group, which includes Curitel, Pantech Co. and SK Teletech Co., aims to sell a total of 30 million handsets overseas.