The largest wireless carrier in Japan has lost 3.2 million users over the last 4 1/2 years, many of those lost subscribers are assuredly attributable to the fact the carrier does not offer Apple’s popular iPhone, yet the carrier has still not made a deal to carry the device. However, pressure to relent is mounting.
The carrier is focused on developing a “lifestyle system,” which requires certain software to come preinstalled on phones, NTT DoCoMo CEO Kaoru Kato said in an interview withReuters. Apple refuses to allow carriers to preinstall apps on the iPhone, and it also will not allow providers to place their logos on its devices — another remaining issue with NTT DoCoMo.
As NTT DoCoMo continues to bleed subscribers, observers believe that a deal to carry the iPhone is a must for the carrier if it wants to stay on top of the heap in Japan. Some of NTT DoCoMo’s executives are reportedly pushing internally for the carrier to give in and sign with Apple.
NTT DoCoMo is one of just a handful of major carriers outside of the U.S. that does not offer the iPhone to their customers.
