Telecommunications

October 2007

NTT East, West Now Command 70% Of Fiber-Optic Telecom Market
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. regional arms NTT East Corp. and NTT West Corp. had boosted their combined market share in fiber-optic communications services to 70.2% as of June 30, a Communications Ministry survey finds. NTT East and NTT West together held more than 70% of the market for the first time. Rivals KDDI Corp. and Softbank Corp. have voiced concerns about the NTT group's influence. Power company affiliates had 10.1% of the market, with KDDI trailing at 6.5%. The quarterly survey, released Monday, reports that there were 9.66 million fiber-optic service subscribers as of the end of June, up 53% from a year earlier. Seeking to acquire 30 million subscribers by 2010, NTT East and NTT West have stepped up their efforts. As a result, their market shares have been on the rise. They held 77.9% of the market for individual homes and corporations and 59.8% for group housing, such as condominiums. To ensure fair competition, the ministry intends to check whether regulations imposed on the NTT group are effective. It began the survey with the July-September quarter of 2002. (The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, October 01, 2007)