TOKYO—NTT DoCoMo, the leading mobile carrier in Japan, will launch cellular phone bill settlement service via i-mode on 22 October, NTT DoCoMo announced on 13 September. Using the service, NTT DoCoMo’s i-mode service subscribers will be able to settle their cellular phone bill on an i-mode site. To use this service, the user needs to have an account at Fuji Bank, a leading city bank in Japan. Once registered to the services, i-mode users can check the amount of telephone bill on the “charging site” on i-mode, and transfer money to their bank account on i-mode.
According to NTT DoCoMo, about 80 percent of its customers are paying their bill using an automated wire transfer service; however the remaining 20 percent are paying their bill at a bank or a convenience store outlet. The new settlement service is targeting the 20 percent of customers. NTT DoCoMo is planing to expand the number of banks which will provide the same settlement service.
