―Rated as the GLOBAL WINNER in four out of eight categories, achieving two consecutive wins in the "World's No. 1 in Connected Experience" rating―
KDDI Corporation
Okinawa Cellular Telephone Company
Tokyo, March 5, 2026―KDDI and Okinawa Cellular (powered by the KDDI network) received the GLOBAL WINNER award (world's top rank rating) [
1] in four out of eight categories (Reliability Experience, Voice App Experience, Games Experience, and Time on 4G/5G) at the Mobile Network Experience Global Awards 2026 [2] presented by Opensignal Limited, a global analytics company, on February 11, 2026. The companies have won the GLOBAL WINNER award for two consecutive years in the Reliability Experience category, in which network connectivity is comprehensively evaluated, and have achieved two consecutive wins in the "World's No. 1 in Connected Experience" rating [3].
As the award winner, KDDI received a commemorative trophy from Opensignal on March 4, 2026, at MWC26 Barcelona, the world's largest and most influential connectivity event held in Barcelona, Spain.
- Congratulatory speech from Charles Rutstein, Chairman and CEO, Opensignal Limited
KDDI has received outstanding ratings in our Global Awards for two consecutive years. Their awards in four categories, including the honorable award of Reliability Experience, demonstrate KDDI's commitment to excellence.
- Comment from Kazuhiro Furuhata, Executive Officer and General Manager, Network Node Technical Development Division, Core Technology Sector, KDDI Corporation
This year, we were rated as the GLOBAL WINNER in four out of eight categories and granted the top rating in the Reliability Experience category for the second year in a row.
We are very pleased to have achieved two consecutive wins, which reflect our united, companywide efforts and consistent focus on customer experience, end-to-end network optimization, and 5G SA coverage area expansion.
We expect our 5G SA coverage area to exceed 90% by the end of March. In addition, we will continue improving quality and expanding our coverage area, including the installation of more dual-band MMUs that support the two Sub6 frequency bands.
We will continue aiming for new heights so that more customers can experience a feeling of security through communication.
(Reference)
■Efforts to expand au coverage areas
KDDI is actively expanding the coverage areas along everyday routes, such as railroad lines and business districts, to allow customers to stay connected throughout their daily lives. In addition, to keep customers connected beyond their daily activities, KDDI is taking measures for telecommunications that utilize vehicle-mounted and transportable base stations and Starlink for mountainous areas and outdoor events where it is difficult to install fiber-optic communication. KDDI also provides au 5G Fast Lane, which allows customers to use 5G telecommunication more comfortably at crowded events, etc. Furthermore, to expand the au coverage area across all of Japan, KDDI provides au Starlink Direct, a direct telecommunications service between satellites and smartphones.
These services foster the experiences of "being connected in daily life," "being connected in non-daily activities," and "being connected wherever you can see the sky."
- [1]Rated as the GLOBAL WINNER in four categories (Reliability Experience, Games Experience, Voice App Experience, and Time on 4G/5G) in the February 2026 report. Among these categories, the GLOBAL WINNER in the Voice App Experience and Time on 4G/5G categories were rated in collaboration with other companies.
- [2]
- [3]The world's No. 1 in "Connected Experience" is based on the No. 1 rating in the Reliability Experience category of the Global Mobile Network Experience Report by Opensignal Limited. KDDI has received a No. 1 rating in the last two reports in a row (comparing 142 MNOs in 41 countries in the February 2025 report and 151 MNOs in 44 countries in the February 2026 report). For details, visit the website of Opensignal Limited.
- *The information contained in the articles is current at the time of publication.
Products, service fees, service content and specifications, contact information, and other details are subject to change without notice.
Downloads