3G Goes Yu Yu

ASIA : NTT DoCoMo, Inc. and its eight regional subsidiaries today announced that Yu Yu Call™ discounts will be extended to include 3G videophone communication beginning October 1, 2003.

The existing service offers discounts of up to 30% on calls to up to five user-designated phone numbers. With the change, customers will also receive Yu Yu Call discounts when using FOMA videophone, M-stage V-Live™ video streaming or M-stage Visual Net™ videoconferencing during calls to designated phone numbers.

The Yu Yu Call discount service has been available for both 2G and FOMA voice calls, with a basic monthly fee of 180 Japanese yen. Thirty percent is deducted on call charges to designated DoCoMo numbers, and a 10% discount applies to calls to designated non-DoCoMo numbers and fixed-line phones. From April 2002, DoCoMo added a bonus service that awards a 10 yen dialing allowance to the called party for every 3 minutes that a call lasts, provided that person is a DoCoMo user and registered as one of the caller's designated numbers.

Application for the new Yu Yu Call service starts today (September 8 for FOMA Data Plan 22 subscribers) at all DoCoMo Shops and at http://www.esite.nttdocomo.co.jp/ (Japanese only). This website can also be accessed from the official i-mode menu known as iMenu™. Application is also possible by calling 151 from a DoCoMo mobile phone, or dialing 0120-800-000 (Japanese) or 0120-005-250 (English) from a fixed-line phone. All numbers are toll-free. Discounts start from the next full month following application.

In the line with official requirements, DoCoMo today notified the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs and Posts and Telecommunications of its new service.