Major mobile phone carriers KDDI Corp. and SoftBank Corp. saw their group operating profits hit record highs in fiscal 2019, which ended in March, while rival NTT Docomo Inc. posted a lower profit, earnings reports show.
KDDI’s operating profit grew 1.1 percent from the previous year to ¥1.02 trillion thanks to its brisk financial and settlement services, although its smartphone sales were sluggish due to stricter regulations on discounts on mobile phone handsets.
Operating profit at SoftBank was up 11.4 percent at ¥911.7 billion. Its revenue and net profit also hit record highs, rising by 4.4 percent to ¥4,86 trillion and by 2.3 percent to ¥473.1 billion, respectively, on the back of affiliate Z Holdings Corp.’s acquisition of online fashion retailer Zozo Inc. last year.
NTT Docomo saw its revenue drop 3.9 percent to ¥4.65 trillion, the first decline in five years, following the launch in June 2019 of a subscription plan to cut communications fees by up to 40 percent and a drop in smartphone sales due to the tighter handset discount rules.
Its operating profit sagged 15.7 percent to ¥854.6 billion, and net profit shrank 10.9 percent to ¥591.5 billion.
