The Ministry of Communications aims to separate monthly charges from handset subsidies in mobile contracts.
Background: The Japanese government has considered the way mobile contracts are sold as an issue since last year. In August 2018, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga called out mobile operators saying they could reduce their retail prices by 40%.
What action is the government taking? The government has now proposed an amendment to the country’s Telecommunication Business Law, which would require operators to present charges for the service separately from those for devices in order to achieve ‘inexpensive and easy-to-understand’ charges. The law would also give users stronger rights to opt out mid-contract, which often last two to four years, and introduce a registration requirement for retailers, as well as penalties for companies misleading customers to maximise their sales.
Next steps: The draft amendment has now been submitted to the Japanese parliament (Diet) which will have to discuss it and approve it.
