I read on the seekingalpha site:
<quote on>
Industry sources said that Japan's Softbank Corp. (SFTBF.PK) has plans
to make mobile phone customers refund the cost of subsidizing phones
if they cancel their subscription within two years. The move is seen
as helping the company spread its costs over time and promote customer
loyalty as the industry braces for a new rule from October that lets
users keep their numbers when switching operators. The current
situation typically allows Japanese mobile phone operators substantial
subsidies to retailers to bring down the retail price of phones, or
even offer them free of charge. They earn back the cost over time
through monthly fees. Softbank's bestselling digital TV phones made by
Sharp Corp. (SHCAY.PK) cost Softbank about 70,000 yen (US$600) but are
currently priced as low as 24,000 yen (US$200). Softbank borrowed 1.2
trillion yen (US$10.2 billion) to buy Vodafone Group Plc.'s (VOD)
local unit to become Japan's third largest mobile carrier. Sources
said that Softbank also aims to catch up with industry leader NTT
DoCoMo Inc. (DCM) and KDDI Corp. by expanding its network and making
new phones.
<quote off>
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On 9/5/06, Curt Sampson <cjs@cynic.net> wrote:
> For example, operators can do do charge cancellation fees; for many
> years Docomo has had a cancellation fee when you subscribe to a one-year
> discount plan and then terminate early. And what you pay to upgrade your
> phone on an existing contract varies substantially based on how long
> you've had your old phone. So why not tie a cheap phone price to a one-
> or two-year plan, and charge a substantial cancellation fee for that,
> as operators in the U.S. do? It would make it much less worthwhile to
> "game" the system, without having to go to the trouble of trumping up
> charges against people who've found a point of arbitrage.
Received on Wed Sep 6 08:46:45 2006