All DoCoMo handsets to be GSM-capable within 2 years, sez paper

Original post: click here

Subscribe to these comments

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

vincent @ May 21st 2006 11:38PM

Deluxe, Did the mobile telephone licenses that were awarded to softbank and the other two ur-carriers come with an allotment of the wireless spectrum? I was under the impression that it did not, which was why Softbank was originally looking to contract 3G spectrum from voda-jp as an MVNO.

As unlikely as it seems that Softbank's acquiring of VodafoneKK would turn it around, there does seem to be some buzz about how Softbank will integrate their mobile business unit in with their other network services. I guess a lot of the questions regarding their direction will be answered when the first Softbank-designed phones are released.

With regards to the original story. I sort of doubt that Docomo will make all of their handsets GSM compatible. The ability to roam internationally with your own handset doesn't seem to have been much of a draw for Voda-jp, and Docomo's world-wing service seems to have filled most of the gap for those that don't want / need an internationally compatible handset as their main phone. Moreover, I would guess that moving their entire line to GSM compatible would mean phasing out their PDC network. Docomo, like the other carriers, still have a larger 2G customer base, and that many subscribers upgrading over the next 3-4 years might cause more than a few to look at other networks...especially after number portability becomes available in November.

Eh, but who knows...I'm sure Docomo's plan is more sophisticated than the way it was described in the linking story...

Add your comments

New Users

Name

E-mail

Current Users

E-mail:

Password

Remember Me

E-Mail me when someone replies to this comment

replying to thread #1533360

Add your comments:

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.

Please note that gratuitous links to your site are viewed as spam and may result in removed comments. And yes, comments are moderated.