Share prices of Japan's mobile operators have come under pressure after a senior government official said there is room for mobile prices to fall by as much as 40 percent. Japan is aiming to force carriers to cut their monthly fees and stop bundling the cost of smartphones with services, a senior telecoms ministry source told Reuters.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga was quoted by Kyodo News as saying that the operators have room to slash fees by 40 percent. The government sees the high cost of telecom services as holding back consumer spending on other things.
NTT Docomo, KDDI and SoftBank typically provide phones without upfront charges as part of fixed-term contracts that can cost as much as JPY 10,000 (USD 90.51) a month. Customers effectively pay for handsets in installments.
The government, which sees these contracts as muddying the cost of handsets and mobile fees and creating barriers for entry, wants carriers to charge separately for phones, the senior telecoms ministry source told Reuters.
Telecoms fees as a percentage of total household spending have continued to rise, government figures show, reaching 4.2 percent last year, driven by higher mobile costs.
A KDDI spokeswoman said the carrier has created plans that separate the cost of the handset and carrier fees, and has lowered fees for customers. A Docomo spokesman says the firm has cut costs for customers and “continues to consider changes to fees based on the wishes of customers.” A SoftBank spokeswoman said the carrier continues to examine how to improve services for customers.
