DoCoMo Sees op Profit Gain in Next Fiscal Year

Posted 05 December 2006 @ 11:10 am EET     Print     Reprint     E-Mail     Comments

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Japan's NTT DoCoMo Inc. (9437.T) said on Tuesday it expected a gain in operating profit in the next fiscal year after posting a bigger-than-expected 7.4 percent profit decline in the first-half.

Executive Senior Vice President Masayuki Hirata said in an interview with Reuters on the sidelines of the ITU Telecom World 2006 forum in Hong Kong that the gain would be thanks to fresh revenues from international roaming and lower handset costs.

DoCoMo, a unit of former state-owned phone monopoly Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (NTT) (9432.T), is speeding up its efforts to shift its users in Japan to so-called third-generation (3G) networks that allows faster music downloads and Web surfing.

The Tokyo-based operator will also start developing its "Super 3G" services, an extension of its existing network, that would enable data transmission speeds 250 times faster than the current service.

DoCoMo has been seeking to spread international roaming services, and its so-called "wallet phone" technology, which allows consumers to use their phones as debit or credit cards, to drive revenues and retain customers.