The British group VODAFONE has paid 249 bn yen for a 15% stake in JAPAN TELECOM. This investment, the second largest ever made in Japan by a foreign company after the RENAULT-NISSAN agreement, should enable VODAFONE to steal a march over its rival BRITISH TELECOM in the fight for control of J-PHONE. BT has a 20% stake in this mobile phone subsidiary in which JAPAN TELECOM has a 54% stake.