Finding a Connection: Android, Line, and Docomo’s Network Outage

Line has experienced explosive growth -- Photo: ameblo.jp/k-1guide

In the wake of its most recent network disruption, Japanese mobile carrier NTT Docomo (NYSE:DCM) is scrambling to find ways to improve both its network service and its public image. The company has said that a number of free VoIP applications were a major cause behind the service disruption on Wednesday. We got in touch with a Docomo representative this afternoon to find out which apps were the biggest culprits.

Not surprisingly Skype is one, but readers might be interested to know that up-and-coming voice chat app Line was the first one mentioned. Last week we reported that Line has just passed 15 million downloads, just 30 days after hitting the 10 million download mark one month before. Naver Japan has been running some TV adverts for Line over the past few months (see below), which have likely also contributed to the apps explosive growth.

It will be interesting to watch how Japanese telecoms adjust to the many new ways that consumers are using data. Docomo of course has its new LTE network, although for the time being it still has to find some way to satisfy the rest of its customers. Docomo has also reportedly asked Google to modify its Android operating system in such a way that would put less strain on its network. The carrier’s smartphone lineup is entirely Android (the iPhone 4S is on competing networks au and Softbank) and it’s interesting to note that Android does appear to consumer more data than iOS.

The Nikkei reported (and Docomo confirms) that the company will ask company president and CEO Ryuji Yamada and other execs to take pay cuts in order to take responsibility for the outages. The report notes that this is expected to amount to 20 percent of Yamada’s pay for three months, and 10 percent for the other directors.

Despite Docomo’s recent troubles, the company had the largest net gain in subscribers among all major Japanese telcos in December.