DoCoMo planning i-mode discount


DoCoMo began photo transmission for i-mode customers in June, and will also offer the discount to 3G customers

TOKYO, Japan -- NTT DoCoMo will offer discounted pricing for heavy users of its i-mode service, according to a report.

DoCoMo, Japan's largest cell-phone service, will start the discount on September 1 for customers who spend more than 30,000 yen a month on i-mode, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported over the weekend.

The company will cut the tab by 33 percent for costs above 30,000 yen ($254), the Nikkei said, citing unnamed company sources.

The move comes in response to customers complaining that they are being overcharged.

Discount to hit most customers

I-mode is sometimes called "2.5G," falling between the second and third generations of cell-phone service. The company began offering photo transmission in June.

Customers pay for the amount of data they send and receive. They pay a basic charge of 300 yen ($2.54) a month.

DoCoMo will offer the same discount to its "3G" customers, a service called Foma.

DoCoMo had 34 million i-mode users at the end of July. Only 2 to 3 percent of them will get the discount, according to the Nikkei, meaning around 5 billion yen ($42 million) in lost revenue.

DoCoMo stock is down 3.4 percent at 255,000 yen early on Monday afternoon, on a day the Nikkei average is down 2.28 percent.