Are DoCoMo's Glory Days Gone?
from the how-quickly-they-fall dept
For the past few years no discussion of mobile phones and data has been able to avoid talking about NTT DoCoMo’s iMode system. It was this amazing success story that took the world completely by surprise – and let them expand into Europe and the US through partnerships with KPN Mobile and AT&T Wireless. Now, however, BusinessWeek is pointing out that the market for i-mode in Japan has fallen off a cliff. Whereas the stores used to be packed, they’re now empty. Subscribers are signing up at a much slower rate, and are using the system less. There’s also the fact that their expensive 3G system hasn’t made people come running. It will be interesting to see how DoCoMo handles these sudden challenges.
