Japanese operator NTT DoCoMo has acquired a 35% stake in mobile video firm PacketVideo for $45.5 million.
DoCoMo says that the all-cash deal is intended to bolster its position in providing advanced music and video services to its customers, while keeping the flow of product innovation coming from its partner.
"PacketVideo has been a key supplier of software to DOCOMO and has made important contributions to the success of our services in the Japanese market," says Toshio Miki, senior VP and MD of DoCoMo's Communication Device Development division.
"We are pleased to become an equity partner of PacketVideo and are very confident of the company's continued growth and long-term success."
The two companies have been working together since 1998, and PacketVideo's pvPlayer multimedia player has been installed in more than 90 of DoCoMo's mobile handsets so far. The company's other customers include US operator Verizon Wireless.
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