NTT DoCoMo Inc. aims to ship as many as 1 million smart phones in Japan, helped by the release of a model running Google Inc.'s Android operating system.
The company aims to capture half of the country's market for smart phones, estimated to be between 1.5 million and 2 million units in the 12 months ending Dec. 31, President Ryuji Yamada said in a Thursday interview in Tokyo. DoCoMo also offers Research in Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry and mobile phones using Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Mobile software.
The Tokyo-based carrier will begin selling an Android handset made by Taiwan's HTC Corp. Friday to compete with Apple Inc.'s iPhone offered by rival Softbank Corp. DoCoMo plans to introduce an Android model made by a different maker in its winter lineup, Yamada said, without elaborating.
"The iPhone is definitely a wonderful machine, but in terms of technology, our smart phone lineup should give it a run for its money," Yamada said. DoCoMo, which has been in talks with Apple on offering the iPhone, "has not given up yet," he said.