SoftBank invests in ‘handy Japan’ hotel technology service

(From left) handy Japan CEO Hiro Katsuse, Tink Labs Founder and CEO Terence Kwok and Softbank President and CEO Ken Miyauchi pose for a photo during a press conference in Tokyo on July 2, 2018. AP

TOKYO  — Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank is investing in a mobile device service for hotel guests, called handy Japan, that offers information on tourist attractions and internet access.

Terms of the deal, announced Monday, were not disclosed.

Handy, developed by Hong Kong-based Tink Labs, is available in 650,000 rooms in 4,000 hotels in 82 countries.

It rolled out in Japan last July and has been adopted by 1,700 hotels and 240,000 rooms, about a third of the nation’s hotels, both sides said.

Handy works as a smartphone rental that’s a complimentary hotel service.

The device can contact a hotel’s concierge, link to the internet and make local and international calls, It also provides multilingual city guides.

SoftBank said its investment help develop “Internet of Things” or IoT, services for handy devices. /ee