| The following is a summary of the results of the FY2000 survey of price variances between domestic and overseas telecommunications services. |
| 1. | Japan's Internet connection charges have recently dropped dramatically, in particular DSL, which is now cheaper in Tokyo than in New York. |
| 2. | Since the introduction of MYLINE (carrier preselection service) in May 2001, phone charges are also declining considerably, both for local and long distance services. As competition has continued to develop, Japan's telecommunications services have become much cheaper than they were at the same time last year, considerably closing the gap between domestic and overseas prices and bringing Japan steadily in line with equivalent services in the West. |
| 3. | The depreciation of the yen (from US$1 = \110.35 to \126.00) has also been a factor in decreasing the gap between domestic and overseas prices.
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| Note: |
It should be noted that with regard to telecommunications services, it is not always possible to make generalizations regarding the size of the gap between domestic and overseas prices, due to differences in the prevailing circumstances in each country such as the existence of various charge systems and standard and discount rates, regional price variances within the same country, and the large influence of fluctuations in currency exchange rates. With these reservations, the results of this survey can be regarded as one index of the situation.
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| 1. | Survey Background |
| | This survey has been conducted every year since FY1994, in conjunction with the recognition in the April 1995 emergency economic measures that domestic and overseas price variances were a problem whose resolution required a concerted government effort. The following is a summary of the results of the survey for FY2000, the survey period for which is in principle February 2001.
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| 2. | Survey Subjects |
| | (1)Internet connection, (2) domestic telephone, (3) mobile phone, (4) international telephone, (5) dedicated line charges in the following six cities were compared: Tokyo, New York, London, Paris, Dusseldorf, Geneva. Currency conversions were made using the August 1, 2001 TTS rates (customer telegraphic transfer rates).
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| 3. | Outline |
| | Noteworthy points concerning each category of charges are as follows:
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| 1 | Internet |
| | * | A diversity of carriers, including NTT East and NTT West, are offering high speed DSL Internet access at fixed rates, and as a result of plummeting prices for such services in recent months in Japan, combined with a rise in the price of such services in America, positions have been reversed, and DSL service is now cheaper in Tokyo than in New York. |
| | * | American cable Internet access charges have also risen, closing the gap with Japan, whose cable Internet charges are now on par with the rest of the world, even if Dusseldorf is cheaper. |
| | * | Due to the drop in prices in Japan compared with the same time last year, the flat rate service offered to ISDN users by NTT East and West now costs only 1.2 times the equivalent service in New York, down from 1.8 times for the previous year. This represents a considerable closing of the gap, and makes Tokyo cheaper than London for this service. |
| | * | Further spread of such services is expected, including the fiber optic Internet access service which was launched in parts of Tokyo and Osaka in August, 2001, and will be expanded to cover other regions.
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| 2 | Domestic telephone services |
| | * | The daytime weekday standard charge of \10 for 3 minutes, which had remained the same for 25 years, was reduced to \8.5, becoming cheaper than ever before in comparison with other countries. |
| | * | Since the start of MYLINE, long distance call charges have been reduced, with intra-prefectural calls now on par with international standards. The price gap between inter-prefectural calls in Japan and the equivalent in other countries has closed, but apart from the standard charge for New York, Japan is still more expensive than other countries in this category where discounted and night rates are concerned. |
| | * | The initial subscription fee and monthly line charges are expensive compared with other cities, but costs of transferring lines is cheap. |
| | * | In the future we can expect to see lower inter-prefectural standard charges, expansion of discounted calls and new fee plans.
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| 3 | Mobile phone services |
| | * | Package plans composed of fixed subscription fee and a predetermined amount of call charges provided free are now the mainstream, but many different plans exist. This makes a simple comparison with other countries difficult, but if pushed to do so, we would have to admit that Tokyo prices are higher than those of the other cities. |
| | * | In a comparison of prices for a 3-minute call during the daytime on a weekday, the standard charge for a call within a single operational area is lower than Geneva, but higher than the other cities. For calls outside operational areas, Tokyo is cheaper than New York and Geneva, but somewhat more expensive than the other cities. |
| 4 | International phone services |
| | * | Standard charges for calls from Tokyo to New York are somewhat cheaper than in the opposite direction, but Tokyo is more expensive where discount rates are concerned. |
| | * | Between Japan and Europe, it is more expensive for both standard and discount rates to make calls from Tokyo, and we can expect further reductions in standard rates and expansion of discount calls. |
| 5 | Dedicated line (leased circuit) services |
| | * | Straight comparisons are difficult due to differences in service quality, etc., but where standard dedicated lines are concerned, Tokyo is conspicuously more expensive than other cities, including short-distance leased lines used for last-mile connections to the Internet. |
| | * | However, with certain exceptions, a simplified service with reduced monitoring / maintenance and backup (economy service, or the equivalent ATM leased circuit service which is offered in various grades according to level of maintenance and backup) is on par with the world average. With the spread of broadband, we can expect to see further diversification of service menus attuned to customer needs. |
| 6 | General conclusions |
| | (1) | According to this year's survey, although there are some differences in the types of service, telecommunications service prices in Japan are rapidly approaching the same level as other developed countries overall. |
| | (2) | The Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications will continue its efforts to reduce telecommunications service prices through promoting fair competition, with the aim of ensuring that Japan becomes a world leader in telecommunications services. |