Latest news with #Docomo
Asahi Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Asahi Shimbun
VOX POPULI: Latest chapter in the history of emoji draws to a close in Japan
Pictograms used in smartphone apps and other applications (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Birthday messages from friends are never complete without a flurry of emojis. Whether sent from just down the street or halfway across the world, the visual language they carry is remarkably universal—cakes, candles and flower bouquets light up the screen with festive familiarity. At times, these symbols come with delightful cultural flourishes. One friend from Italy, where the birthday custom includes gently tugging the celebrant's ears for each year of life, once added an ear emoji to the message—a whimsical nod to tradition. There's a quiet joy in simply taking in this digital bouquet, each emoji a tiny but heartfelt gesture of celebration. The global spread of the Japanese word 'emoji' is often credited, in part, to its phonetic similarity to the English word 'emotion'—a coincidence that smoothed their adoption abroad. Another theory points out that long before emoji became ubiquitous, the West had already embraced 'emoticons,' a portmanteau of 'emotion' and 'icon,' used to represent facial expressions through simple punctuation, like ':)'. Whatever their linguistic roots, emojis have long since transcended borders, evolving into a shared visual language of emotion in the digital age. Against this backdrop, a recent announcement by NTT Docomo Inc. carries a note of quiet poignancy: the company will end support for its original 'Docomo Emoji,' a pioneering and widely used set that helped shape the way we express ourselves online. Beginning later this month, newly released smartphones will no longer include these foundational pictographs. Docomo first introduced its emoji set in 1999, alongside its groundbreaking 'i-mode' mobile internet service. At the time, the notion of conveying emotion through tiny digital images felt nothing short of revolutionary. I still remember the thrill of discovering them for the first time. I eagerly embraced the set—featuring a laughing face with a wide, block-like mouth, simple hearts, and a bold upward-curving arrow. Even now, their pixelated simplicity retains a certain nostalgic charm, evoking the early days of mobile communication when expression found new life in just a few pixels. The original set featured about 200 symbols. Today, the global emoji repertoire has expanded to nearly 4,000. In her book 'Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language,' Canadian linguist Gretchen McCulloch describes emojis as digital 'gestures'—tools that help written communication mirror the nuance, tone and emotional shading of spoken conversation. Humanity has always strived to refine its means of expression. And in an era where smartphones transmit vast volumes of information in an instant, I sometimes find myself nostalgic for that simple, pixelated heart from the early Docomo emoji. —The Asahi Shimbun, June ２ * * * Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
Business Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
NTT Docomo to buy SBI's net bank for 420 billion yen in cutthroat market
[TOKYO] NTT Docomo is buying SBI Holdings' online bank in a 420 billion yen (S$3.7 billion) deal to shore up the Japanese mobile carrier's financial offerings in a hyper-competitive market. Nippon Telegraph & Telephone's mobile unit will launch a tender offer for SBI Sumishin Net Bank, offering 4,900 yen per share – a 49 per cent premium to the online bank's closing price on May 28. At the conclusion of the deal, Docomo aims to own 65.81 per cent of the online bank, which will delist. Sumitomo Mitsui Banking will continue to hold 34.19 per cent of SBI Sumishin, the companies said in a statement on Thursday (May 29). Shares of SBI Sumishin Net Bank surged by a record 21.3 per cent after local outlets including the Nikkei reported the news earlier. NTT's stock price rose 0.6 per cent while SBI Holdings gained 7.8 per cent. The move is part of a capital alliance between the state-backed telecom group and SBI Holdings, where NTT will invest 110 billion yen in the venture capital fund operator for a 8.25 per cent stake. NTT and SBI Holdings will co-develop new services from asset management to insurance, while NTT Data Group will provide support for SBI Holdings' financial services, executives said. Docomo, which has close to half of Japan's mobile phone market, has been slow to bolster its financial asset offerings and services compared with its rivals. That's as nimbler competitors have gradually eaten into its dominant share. Japan's third-largest carrier SoftBank made the country's biggest payments app PayPay a subsidiary in 2022 and recently announced a three-way partnership with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking's credit card operations. No 2 mobile provider KDDI has its own financial unit. Online shopping mall operator Rakuten Group has started a mobile unit, seeking to expand the reach of its lucrative financial arms via the telecom business. The acquisition targets existing Docomo customers rather than attract new ones and is a defensive move to prevent cancellations, said Naoki Fujiwara, senior fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management. If the carrier can expand into areas like investment trusts, it may create additional revenue, he added. BLOOMBERG
Asahi Shimbun
22-05-2025
- Asahi Shimbun
After 26 years, NTT Docomo is retiring all its emojis in June
Japan's largest telecommunications operator NTT Docomo Inc. announced on May 21 that it is discontinuing its "Docomo Emoji" set that comes with each of its devices. The decision to phase them out was made "in light of the current status of emoji usage." The set will no longer appear on models released in late June and beyond; this applies to Android smartphones and Docomo cellphones. Galaxy series phones are briefly exempt as all new models from July will no longer feature the emojis. Those with older models will also see the set eventually disappear following a software update scheduled for October at the earliest. The company is calling for users to switch over to emojis created by Google Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Docomo's emojis were first introduced to cellphones in 1999 via the provider's "i-mode" internet connection service. They gained widespread use to supplement or substitute text in those early days of digital communication. These deceptively simple designs have significantly impacted overseas emoji culture as well. In 2016, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York acquired and exhibited that original 176-emoji set.
Nikkei Asia
21-05-2025
- Business
- Nikkei Asia
NTT Docomo, popularizer of emoji, ends support after 26 years
TOKYO -- NTT Docomo will stop supporting its own in-house emoji, the Japanese wireless carrier said Wednesday, marking the end of an era for one of the first companies to use the digital pictures. Docomo's emoji will no longer be available starting with devices sold from late June onwards, or July for devices from Samsung Electronics. Users will need to use emoji from Google or Samsung instead.
CNA
08-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Japan's NTT plans to take NTT Data private for $16.4 billion
Japanese telecoms firm Nippon Telegraph and Telephone announced plans on Thursday to take its subsidiary NTT Data private by purchasing the shares it does not already own for 2.37 trillion yen ($16.4 billion). NTT said in a statement it would launch a tender offer for NTT Data at 4,000 yen per share, representing a 34 per cent premium from Wednesday's closing price. NTT Data's shares were untraded on Thursday due to a glut of buy orders, ending at the daily-limit high of 3,492 yen, following a Nikkei newspaper report about the plan. NTT currently owns 57.7 per cent of NTT Data, an information technology services provider with a market capitalisation of $29.5 billion at the close of trade on Wednesday. NTT, a former state monopoly still part government-owned, took mobile carrier NTT Docomo private in a 4 trillion yen deal in 2020. The telecoms company has partnered Toyota Motor to develop a mobility platform and is also developing next-generation light-based communications technology. NTT is also a major operator of data centres. Management buyouts and corporate acquisitions have surged in Japan in recent years. With the NTT deal, a transaction would conclude a prominent parent-child listing - a structure that remains common in Japan. Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has proposed acquiring supplier Toyota Industries in a potential 6 trillion yen deal, media reported last month. The founding family of Seven & i Holdings attempted a buyout of the 7-Eleven convenience store owner but failed to secure funding. Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard has offered $47 billion for the retailer. ($1 = 143.3800 yen)
