The wireless pager, which Japanese call the "pocket bell" makes its debut in the communications system in 1968 as service is initiated in the 23 metropolitan wards of Tokyo. Pager service is one of many new services enabled by the development of miniature electronic components. The first pager device is about as large as a paperback book, and contains a complex internal receiving circuitry with nearly 40 transistors. With miniaturization and text transmission capabilities, the uses of this new product will multiply rapidly. At the start, the service costs 2,000 yen per month plus a charge for every time the pager is contacted from the subscriber's phone number.

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