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NTT DOCOMO CUTS PHONE FEES, INTENSIFIES WAR WITH JAPAN TELCO RIVALS
- By The Financial District
- Mar 27, 2021
- 2 min read
Japanese wireless communications giant NTT Docomo Inc. launched Friday a lower-priced mobile service plan for large-data usage, intensifying a price battle with its two rivals spurred by government pressure, Mainichi Shimbun reported late on March 26, 2021.
The company's new discounted monthly plan "ahamo" is priced at 2,700 yen ($25) excluding tax for 20-gigabyte data usage -- the lowest among the three major wireless carriers for the same data usage, including unlimited calls up to five minutes.
NTT Docomo said it had accepted applications from over 1.6 million customers as of late February. To cut costs and lower fees, the company and its two rivals -- KDDI Corp., the operator of "au" brand and SoftBank Corp. -- only take applications for their new discounted plans online.
KDDI and SoftBank launched similar lower-priced plans earlier this month called "povo" and "LINEMO," respectively, offering 20-gigabyte services using 4G and 5G networks for 2,480 yen per month excluding tax.
The two provide free voice calls up to five minutes for an extra 500 yen per month, with SoftBank offering the option at no extra cost for one year under its current promotional campaign.
SoftBank also provides free data usage for Line Corp.'s messaging app services such as sending photos and video footage. The monthly charges of the three carriers are now less than half of the average 6,877 yen in Japan for a 20-gigabyte plan as of March last year.
That charge was more expensive than similar services offered in major overseas cities such as Paris and London, according to a government survey.
In addition to the government's pressure to slash fees, the price competition is set to further intensify with Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten Inc., entering the market. In January, Rakuten's mobile phone unit, which launched its full-fledged wireless services last spring, said it will offer a monthly 20-gigabyte data plan for 1,980 yen from next Thursday.
Rakuten Mobile Inc. said it plans to introduce a phased single-fee plan which will be offered for free for up to 1 gigabyte data usage per month and charge 980 yen for up to 3 gigabytes.
