After struggling to boost its miniscule market share in the Japanese market, Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia announced that it will cease selling mobile phones through Japanese mobile operators NTT DoCoMo and Softbank in Japan by the beginning of 2009, according to a Reuter report on November 27. In the future, Nokia will focus more on R&D and sourcing for the global market, retain only its high-end Vertu branded mobile phones in Japan, according to the same report.

Nokia recently also announced its plan to offer MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) mobile phone service in Japan in February 2009 at the earliest, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. Leveraging the network owned by DoCoMo, the company will offer this service exclusively for its high-end Vertu phones, according to the same source.