Japanese technology company NEC is set to end its development of 4G and 5G base stations.

Nikkei reports that NEC is exiting the market, amid tough competition from European and Chinese vendors.

In doing so, NEC is the latest Japanese technology firm to halt the development of 5G base stations. Nikkei previously reported last month that Kyocera has abandoned its plans to continue developing 5G base stations, due to rising costs and competition.

NEC will instead develop equipment for defense and other applications, as well as for next-generation standards.

"In principle, we won't invest in development in the future," Takayuki Morita, president, NEC, told Nikkei. He added that the company will shift its focus to software.

NEC will continue to provide maintenance and support for its existing 4G and 5G base stations.

The company had positioned its 5G base station business as a key growth pillar in its five-year plan starting in the fiscal year ending March 2022; however, capital investment by 5G telecommunications carriers has been slower than expected.

The market is dominated by Huawei, Ericsson, and Nokia, which hold around 80 percent of the global market share.