LG Electronics says it will be the first to have an LTE device certified and up and running in Japan. The company announced that its LD100 data modem received Telecom Engineering Center (TELEC) certification, clearing the way for the modem to be used in Japan.

Designated by Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), TELEC certificates are issued to products that have passed a series of tests for consistency with Japanese Radio Law technical regulations. The TELEC certification follows the approval

last year from the U.S. FCC.

“With the technology expected to be commercialized this year, this puts LG in the enviable pole position in the LTE market,” said Skott Ahn, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, in a press release.

Having gained TELEC approval, the LD100 will now be technically ready for a field trial with Japan’s LTE network operated by NTT DoCoMo, which expects to launch its LTE service later this year.

Although the LD100 is the first LTE device to receive official endorsement in Japan, two previous LTE devices from LG have received U.S. FCC approval. Last March, the LEO3 became the first such device to receive approval, followed by the M13 – a handover terminal for CDMA EV-DO and LTE – in May.