Wednesday, February 6,2008 @ 5:50pm
DoCoMo, Apple discuss technology, profits
Japan's DoCoMo wireless provider is currently in talks with Apple over the iPhone, with current conversation revolving around technological issues, as well as the division of profit. Bloomberg reports that a partnership with DoCoMo would most likely mean Apple is preparing a W-CDMA version of the iPhone – DoCoMo operates on this standard rather than the current GSM standard the iPhone operates under. Apple is concerned that adopting W-CDMA could potentially cannibalize the company's existing markets.
"The global GSM market is measured in hundreds of millions of users, compared with 50 million W-CDMA subscribers in Japan," Hirata said. "It's unlikely they will launch iPhone in Japan exclusively for DoCoMo."
Apple's infamous anti-rebranding stance is also called into question during the talks, as Japanese mobile service providers typically insist on branding a phone as their own.
Softbank and KDDI are also in talks with Apple regarding the iPhone.