In the Japan market, mobile operator KDDI set up a smart drone platform to store photographs and video in a database in the fourth quarter of 2016, while MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) Rakuten Mobile launched Mavic Pro, a drone developed by China-based DJI, for bundled sale in the quarter, according to Digitimes Research.
KDDI's smart drone platform consists of drones produced by Japan-based Prodrone, 3D maps supplied by Japan-based digital map provider Zenrin for navigation, an operational management system for remote control, supporting cloud computing-based services.
Mavic Pro supports 4K video recording and can be controlled by smartphones with wireless communication distance up to 4km and maximum flight time of 27 minutes. Rakuten Mobile offers Mavic Pro for sale bundled with smartphones and SIM cards, with varying discounts in price depending on smartphone models.
Mobile telecom carriers NTT DoCoMo also promoted drone services in October 2016 and Softbank tested use of drones as base stations in December, Digitimes Research indicated.
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