NTT DOCOMO at 55 Million Users — Nearly Flat for 2009

As of December 31, 2009, NTT DOCOMO was serving 55.44 million subscriber lines, up by 1.2 million compared with a year earlier. Churn for the quarter was 0.45%, roughly the same level as a year earlier. Due to the popularity of discount plans, aggregate ARPU during the quarter for cellular services (FOMA+mova) decreased 4.5% compared to a year earlier to Y5,470 (about US$60).

The number of handsets sold during the quarter ending December 31 declined by 310,000 units to 4.20 units.

For the nine months ending December 31, 2009, NTT DOCOMO’s capital expenditures amounted to Y 484.5 billion (about US$5.36 billion), down 3.2% compared to the same period a year earlier.

Looking ahead, NTT DOCOMO predicts competition will intensify even further in Japan, putting increased pressure on revenues. The company is looking to decrease its network operating costs through a variety of programs.
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