Foundation: 1952
Headquarters: Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo
President: Jun Sawada
Executive Summary: The Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, widely known as NTT, is a major Japanese telecommunications company. Established in 1952 as a state-owned enterprise, it operated this way until its privatization in 1985 to foster competition in the communications sector. Today, the NTT Group comprises NTT East, NTT West, NTT Communications, and NTT Docomo. The government retains one-third of NTT’s shares as stipulated by the NTT Law.
Following World War II, NTT was tasked with reconstructing and expanding Japan’s devastated communication infrastructure. Soon after its founding, the number of telephone subscribers grew to 1.5 million in 1953, reaching twenty million by 1972, and achieving nationwide telephone access by 1977. Despite diversification into new markets, telephone services still account for approximately 80% of NTT’s annual income.
NTT has also ventured into the computer microchip industry, significantly contributing to Japan’s status in the global microchip market. In 1967, NTT established the Data Communications Bureau, which later became NTT Data in 1988 after spinning off. NTT Docomo, the mobile phone arm, was created in 1991. With the advent of the internet, NTT launched the Open Computer Network (OCN) in 1996.
After years of debate with the government, NTT in 1996 agreed to a division into NTT East, NTT West, and NTT Communications to reduce its near-monopoly status in Japan. In the 2000s, NTT expanded through acquisitions such as Dell Services, Dimension Data, and Keane, and began offering cloud services.
In 2019, to enhance its global presence, most of NTT’s branch businesses were brought under the umbrella of the NTT Corporation. NTT has made several international investments in telecommunications, including fixed-line operations in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Australia. Additionally, it owns Verio, an internet data services and web hosting provider in the United States. Its annual revenue is in the range of US$110 billion.