Electronic telephone switching in japan

In Japan every telephone subscriber is a bond holder of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT), the quasi-public corporation that operates the national telephone system under a Government charter. Bond buying to the tune of about 150 thousand yen (hundreds of U.S. dollars) is a prerequisite for telephone installation; the revenue is used to expand the system and keep up with new equipment needs. With this technique of subscriber capitalization, NTT has been able to hold to its plans for rapid expansion of electronic switching, despite the recent severe recession in Japan. In contrast, electronic switching has been slow in getting started in some other countries (notably West Germany and Switzerland).