International Telecom Japan Inc and British Telecommunications Plc have begun offering international telecommunications services over their private global network to Japanese customers. The Concert Virtual Network Service venture with MCI Communications Corp already provides telecommunications services to more than 60 multinational corporate users, but this is the first time that it will be available in Japan.
Mannesmann AG says its Mannesmann Mobilfunk GmbH cellular unit now has 2m subscribers for its D2 mobile phone network. The company says it has gained 550,000 new customers so far this year. It says the growth means that it will create 1,000 new jobs in 1996, and $530m on expanding the network this year.
London-based Internet cafe Cyberspy Ltd has gone into receivership. It closed its doors the week before last. IBM UK Ltd made an agreement with the cafe back in February to use the premises as a showcase for its new media technology, including its Think-Pad portable computers and its speech recognition and virtual reality technology. IBM did not have a financial interest in Cyberspy, which was run as a separate company with other terminals for Internet access. A company called Global Cafe Ltd is taking over control of the site. It has franchises in other countries, but this is believed to be its first Internet cafe in the UK.
