Japan's telecoms ministry has awarded spectrum to the country's three established mobile operators—NTT Docomo, KDDI and SoftBank—along with the recent new entrant Rakuten.  Read more...

There is more backing for 4.8—4.99 GHz in Asia than many people realise. However, it’s not clear if the band’s credentials are strong enough for it to become a 5G mainstay rather than a supporting player.  Read more...

Japan’s forthcoming spectrum award will be the first for 5G decided by a beauty contest rather than an auction. This is not the only thing that makes it unusual.  Read more...

A senior figure at Japanese mobile operator NTT Docomo has told a Brussels conference that many of the carrier's partners "have a misunderstanding of 5G”.  Read more...

Big private profits are being generated through the use of a publicly owned asset, according to the country’s chief cabinet secretary. Read more...

NTT Docomo, KDDI and Softbank have cautioned against an over-reliance on bid size when making spectrum awards, as the Japanese government mulls a shake-up in frequency assignments. Read more...

Operators from countries such as South Korea, Japan and the US attended a meeting held by a group that backs 28 GHz for the first time. Mexico’s regulator was also represented. Read more...

Korean operator KT and vendors Intel and Samsung have been showing off 5G on snow and ice for the past two weeks, but the actual offerings at the event have felt relatively low key. Read more...

The glory days of the country’s mobile industry may be behind them, but a new McKinsey study says there is hope for the future. Read more...

Some policymakers are starting to believe that coverage may be a more important policy objective for spectrum auctions than just filling government coffers. Read more...