## Section 1 ICT Industry Trends

### 1. Comprehensive Strategy Promotions

The Japanese Cabinet decided the Declaration to be the World’s Most Advanced IT Nation in June 2013, following a decision by the IT Strategic Headquarters. The IT Strategic Headquarters evaluates the progress of ICT policy measures and reviews strategies on a timely basis. Since the Cabinet decision of the first Japan Revitalization Strategy in June 2013, the strategy has been revised three times. Each of these revisions have recommended Japan move on ICT initiatives to ensure further growth for the country. Examples include addressing the IoT, big data, and AI era, promoting competition in the mobile market, and establishing the world’s most advanced communications infrastructure.

## Section 2 Developments in Telecommunications Policy

### 1. Developments in telecommunications policy

### (1) Promoting broadband proliferation and fair competition a. Establishment of broadband infrastructure

The establishment of ultra-high-speed broadband infrastructure is important and essential to revitalizing Japan's regions. To promote infrastructure establishment, MIC is launching the ICT Infrastructure Establishment Promotion Project in FY 2016. The program will help cover a portion of the costs when local governments in disadvantaged regions, such as underpopulated regions or remote islands, undertake the construction of optical fiber or other forms of ultra-high-speed broadband infrastructure.

### b. Promotion of mobile services

MIC is engaged in promoting competition between mobile carriers, such as encouraging the unlocking of SIM locks and stimulating the growth of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). In 2015 the Task Force on Mobile Phones Charges and Other Service Conditions, operating under the Study Group on the Safety and Security of ICT Services, examined policies to further reduce and simplify mobile phone communications charges from the standpoint of users. Based on the Task Force's examinations, MIC established in December 2015 a policy to lower smartphone charges for users and to correct handset sales practices. The policy encourages carriers to introduce pricing plans that suit the diverse needs of consumers and corrects handset sales practices that oversell plans to consumers.

### c. Assurance of adequateness, fairness, and transparency in the provision of NTT East and West FTTH access services and other wholesale telecommunications services

MIC finalized the Guideline on the Application of the Telecommunications Business Act as It Pertains to NTT East and West FTTH Access Services and Other Wholesale Telecommunications Services in February 2015 prior to the launch of FTTH access services and other wholesale services by NTT East and NTT West. The Guideline organizes and classifies acts potentially subject to business improvement orders under the Telecommunications Business Act in order to clarify the application of the Telecommunications Business Act with respect to acts performed by carriers that provide wholesale services, carriers that receive wholesale services, and contracted agents that receive wholesale services. Furthermore, the Act to Partially Amend the Telecommunications Business Act and other Legislation, which went into effect in May 2016, introduced an ex post notification system for wholesale telecommunications services, including NTT East and West wholesale services, and a system allowing the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications to organize and make public the content of such notifications.

### d. Conducting market verifications in the telecommunications business field

Because of the profound transformations taking place in the telecommunications market due to the rapid advance of technological innovation, it is necessary to ascertain precisely developments in the market, to allow free competition to function effectively through fair and transparent administration management based on clear rules, and to create new business domains and new services as well as improve user convenience. In view of these necessities, MIC will carry out market verifications from FY 2016 onward that will unify analyses and verifications of market trends and confirmations of the