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Last modified: | DoCoMo man warns Japan uncompetitiveA prominent employee of NTT DoCoMo - Japan's leading mobile network - has warned that the existing regime is proving untenable. Network operators are bearing the brunt of the cost of supplying mobile phones but, simultaneously, Japanese handset manufacturers are unable to compete on price internationally. Like the UK, for example, Japanese operators build the true cost of a handset into the price of a long term contract with their chosen supplier. Except that canny subscribers can use the threat - real or otherwise - of changing operator to obtain a new handset long before the previous handset has proved its worth. Noriaki Ito, head of strategy, with NTT DoCoMo, told the Financial Times that a hybrid system blending the current incentive schemes with an instalment plan that locks the customer into paying the true cost of a handset would prove better. Meanwhile, Japan's cosy system of operators paying vendors to produce specific handsets has major disadvantages. Japanese manufacturers are churning out highly sophisticated handsets for the home market but find themselves uncompetitive pricewise in global markets. Noriaki Ito has a point. While most major electronics groups have the capability of providing advanced handsets to Japanese operators, only Sony has a found partner to enable it to compete on a global basis against the established players such as Nokia and Motorola. This is in sharp contrast to rival Korean manufacturers such as LG and Samsung. Even Taiwanese companies like HTC and BenQ look more competitive than Japanese vendors like Sharp, Toshiba and Sanyo. |
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