INTERVIEW-EAccess says mobile unit set to turn profit in H2

TOKYO, July 2 (Reuters) - Japanese Internet and wireless company eAccess Ltd (9427.T) said its wireless arm eMobile will likely log a profit in the second half of this financial year, helped by high demand for its data services for notebook PCs.

In terms of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation, eMobile is already in the black on a monthly basis, Chief Executive Sachio Semmoto told Reuters in an interview.

"There is a high possibility that we will manage to bring eMobile to a net profit," he said. "The pace of growth is a little faster than we expected."

"Once we attain profit, we will consider possibilities for maximising returns to our investors," he added, but declined to to comment on whether or not he would list the mobile venture, in which Goldman Sachs (GS.N) has a 35.7 percent stake.

EAccess was one of three companies granted new wireless licenses by the Japanese government in 2005.

EAccess, which plans to launch high-speed packet access

(HSPA) in early August, is also seeing cost cuts and other benefits in its ADSL business from its merger with Acca Networks Co earlier than planned, he said.

The company has said it expects the merger to add 7 billion yen in profits over 5 years.

EAccess, which has tied up with Taiwan PC maker Acer Inc (2353.TW) on embedded data services, is also in talks with additional firms about providing embedded data services, Semmoto said. Semmoto is a director and trustee of Reuters Founder Share Company which is charged with safeguarding Thomson Reuters independence and freedom from bias.

(Reporting by Mayumi Negishi; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

((mayumi.negishi@thomsonreuters.com; +81-3-6441-1812; Reuters Messaging: mayumi.negishi.reuters.com@reuters.net))

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