Missed connections: Rakuten's new mobile service hits snag

Almost 20% of users in trial fail to link up to network with limited range

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Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani holds a Rakuten Mini smartphone at a news conference in Tokyo on Sept. 6.

MASAAKI KUDO, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Japanese e-commerce company Rakuten, now the country's fourth mobile carrier, has been hit with a stream of support requests from users unable to connect to its network in the first few weeks of its wireless service trial.

Of the more than 4,500 customers who received SIM cards as of Tuesday, nearly 20% have yet to connect, the company said.

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