NTT DoCoMo Hopes New Logo Will Help Boost Brand Strength

By Kyodo News International, Tokyo

Apr. 18–TOKYO — Cell phone service provider NTT DoCoMo Inc. announced Friday a plan to change on July 1 the logo it has used since the company’s 1992 establishment in a bid to maintain its industry-leader position with a fresh brand image.

“The DoCoMo brand has been losing strength in the past several years, and I say we are at a crucial point,” NTT DoCoMo President and Chief Executive Office Masao Nakamura said at a press conference.

NTT DoCoMo’s share in the Japanese mobile phone market recently fell to 49.7 percent as rivals KDDI Corp. and Softbank Mobile Corp. have been eating away at its share. Competition has intensified particularly after the October 2006 introduction of the number portability system that allows subscribers to switch carriers without having to change phone numbers.

NTT DoCoMo said the company will refurbish the corporate logo at a cost of some 10 billion yen for fiscal 2008. The new logo will be written “docomo” in red letters, compared with the current black-lettered “DoCoMo,” it said.

Nakamura said the company, which currently has 53 million subscribers, will shift its strategy from expanding the subscriber base to maintaining it by improving services.

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