FAQs

The following are frequently asked questions and answers. Please click on the question you would like to read.

	What are the roles played by mobile phone distributors?
	It is said that the mobile phone market has been already saturated. Is there any room for further growth in this sector?
	What about the emergence of new telecommunication carriers?
	How the Mobile Number Portability system (MNP) affected the mobile phone market?
	What are sales incentives? What impact would the abolishment or reduction of these have on the industry?
	What is the future of the FTTH (Optic fiber) market?
	What are FMC and FMBC? What future developments can we look forward to?

	When was Telepark established and what history does it have?
	Where does the company name originate?
	What corporate philosophy does Telepark advocate?
	What index does Telepark consider important in its management?
	What compliance framework does Telepark have in place?
	What corporate governance framework does Telepark have in place?

	What are characteristics of Telepark operations?
	What plans does Telepark have to expand its share in the mobile market?
	How has been Telepark's financial results and business performance?
	What are the objectives of the mid-term management plan?
	Does Telepark have any plans for business diversification?
	Does Telepark have any plans to set up operations overseas?
	What about the management of personal information?

	When and on which stock market is Telepark listed?
	Under what code and category is Telepark listed?
	What is the number of unit stock?
	When does the fiscal term end and when are the record dates for dividends?
	What is Telepark's Dividend Policy?
	When and where does Telepark hold its Annual General Meeting of shareholders?

	What are the roles played by mobile phone distributors?
	It is only in rare cases that telecommunication carriers (such as DoCoMo, au, SoftBank) manage their own stores to sell their mobile-phone handsets. Although names of mobile phone distributors do not directly appear in those retail stores, distributors such as Telepark operate the majority of stores, including carrier shops, to sell mobile-phone handsets to consumers.

	It is said that the mobile phone market has been already saturated. Is there any room for further growth in this sector?
	With the number of mobile handsets, including PHS etc. reaching approximately 97 million, some people may think that the market is reaching maturity. However, since our listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, we have continued to improve business performance and increase our market share without reliance on the market growth and we believe that our growth trend will not change in the future.

	What about the emergence of new telecommunication carriers?
	It is predicted that the introduction of new services in line with the emergence of new telecommunication carriers will further excite both the industry and the market. As a mobile-phone distributor, we hold great expectations for future business development.

How the Mobile Number Portability system (MNP) affected the mobile phone market?

The topic of MNP has been largely played up by the mass media and we believe that its topicality has had a favorable impact on the industry. Although the number of carrier switches made using MNP in the initial six months was slightly under 2 million, the new system has led to an increase in the number of sales since October 24, 2006 as a result of the introduction of new and attractive models by all the major carriers.

What are sales incentives? What impact would the abolishment or reduction of these have on the industry?

Sales incentives include counter value for sales activity that arises at the point of sale, however the majority of these are allocated as the source of discounts for handset prices. Should these incentives be abolished or reduced, mobile phone prices may increase and the renewal periods may be extended. On the other hand, it can also be predicted that consumers will be presented with a greater selection of diverse price plans to suit their pattern of usage.

What is the future of the FTTH (Optic fiber) market?

The number of FTTH subscribers is at present rapidly increasing and is displaying similar trend of that was seen in the ADSL boom several years ago. It is believed that, in addition to the efforts of telecommunication carriers to bring down prices, this is the result of consumers growing adoption of fiber optic services such as IP phones and video contents. In the years to come, we expect that the number of subscribers will continue to grow together with the rise of a broad range of optional services and the arrival of a more convenient broadband era.

What are FMC and FMBC? What future developments can we look forward to?

FMC (Fixed Mobile Convergence) refers to the integration of mobile and fixed line phones and is anticipated to form the solution to the integration of fixed line and mobile communications providing comprehensive telecommunication services including one number, one bill and one-stop service. FMC+B (Broadcast): FMBC (Fixed Mobile and Broadcast Convergence) will provide a new style of telecommunication services aiming to provide consumers with more comfortable living environments and Telepark recognizes it as the key to the future development of telecommunications.

When was Telepark established and what history does it have?

In line with deregulation of the telecommunications industry in 1985, Mitsui & Co., Ltd., Telepark's parent company, entered into the telecommunications business spearheaded by its Telecommunications Division which later led to the establishment of Mitsui Electronic Telecommunication Services Co., Ltd.("METS") in February 1992 focusing on mobile and fixed line services. In April 2001, METS merged with Bussan Telecommunication Co., Ltd. and Bussan Telecommunication Osaka Co., Ltd. to form Mitsui and Associates Telepark Corporation. The company changed its trade name to Telepark Corporation when it was transferred to the 1st Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in October 2004.

	Where does the company name originate?
	Telepark primarily deals in mobile phone and landlines, however in anticipation of moving towards the sale of a diverse range of products in the future, the "Park" in Telepark was derived based on the image of a location where a diverse group of people come together to form a collective "Harmony", much like parks in the US.

	What corporate philosophy does Telepark advocate?
	Telepark is an organization committed to fair and open competition and this stance is evident in the continual commitment to and implementation of our "5C" philosophy based on contribution, challenging spirit, creativity, compliance and corporate governance. Click here for more information concerning our "5C" philosophy.

	What index does Telepark consider important in its management?
	Telepark views ROA (Return on Assets) as one of the most important management indexes and strives to maintain/build on a 10% level of ROA through efficient use of its assets.

What compliance framework does Telepark have in place?

Telepark recognizes compliance and the preservation of corporate ethics as one of its top priorities in fulfilling its social and corporate obligations. In December 2002, Telepark elected a Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) and inaugurated a Compliance Committee consists of members elected from each department, regional headquarters and branch office to review and undertake measures concerning compliance issues. Further, in April 2006, a Compliance Office was established as a permanent body for the implementation of compliance policy in order to maintain and improve compliance framework development and efficacy. Click here for more information.

What corporate governance framework does Telepark have in place?

In order to establish a systematic framework and increase the effectiveness of corporate governance systems from both the perspective of maintaining management transparency and preserving/enhancing corporate value, Telepark places an emphasis on the accountability to clearly explain its management policy to stakeholders and promotes Timely and Fair Disclosure as well as effective Risk Management. Click here for more information.

What are characteristics of Telepark operations?

Telepark's Mobile Telecommunications Business (Mobile phone sales) is based on strong business partnerships with all leading telecommunication carriers and in comparison to our competitors, and is not largely impacted by the policies of individual carriers making. Therefore, we can achieve stable management based on sales strategies in line with market needs. Further, through the development of a diverse sales network (directly owned and operated stores, agent stores, large retail stores and convenience stores), Telepark is actively expanding its business platform. Telepark has also established strong business partnerships with leading telecommunication carriers in relation to its Communication Network Services (Fixed line agent services) and is affiliated with approximately 500 of Japan's most prominent network agents.

	What plans does Telepark have to expand its share in the mobile market?
	Although we are an industry leader, Telepark's share of the mobile market remains at 7.4%. However, through the grouping of small - medium agent stores and M&A activities, Telepark aims to increase its market share to reach double figures.

	How has been Telepark's financial results and business performance?
	Owing to the continued support of our stakeholders, Telepark has recorded increase in net sales as well as income for eight consecutive fiscal years up until the end of the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007 especially sustaining a soaring growth in sales of two decimal places. Click here for more information.

	What are the objectives of the mid-term management plan?
	Telepark has presented "Challenge 5000" as its 3-year plan and aims to achieve net sales of 500 billion yen and increase its share in the mobile market to more than 10% by the fiscal year ending March 2009.

	Does Telepark have any plans for business diversification?
	Telepark's new PIN-based Settlement Business incorporating sales channels accumulated through the sale of pre-paid mobile phones through convenience stores is expanding satisfactorily, and is currently diversifying/increasing its product lines/services including international calls, electric money, other media contents and online music services.

Does Telepark have any plans to set up operations overseas?

In May 2007, Telepark entered into Business Collaboration Agreement on mobile phone sales and other related businesses with Mitsui & Co., Ltd. and Brightstar, (Head Office: Miami, U.S.A, CEO: Marcelo Claure) the worldwide leading wireless device distribution and supply chain solutions management company. Since its inception in 1997, Brightstar has contracted a range of services including the distribution, packaging and inventory management of mobile phones in over 49 countries throughout North, Central and South America. Through the establishment of such an arrangement with Brightstar, a leading organization with extensive knowledge in the outsourcing of mobile phone related services, we plan to look into the possibility of joint ventures and strategic alliances in the future and hope that it will form the driving force behind our entrance into the global market and business expansion.

What about the management of personal information?

In April 2006, Telepark received the privacy mark. The privacy mark is certification issued by the Japan Information Processing Development Corporation (JIPDEC) to businesses with the appropriate measures in place for the protection of personal information in accordance with the Japanese Industry Standard JIS Q 15001. Telepark recognizes the importance of the strict, appropriate and secure management of service related personal information and the personal information of our employees.

	When and on which stock market is Telepark listed?
	Telepark was first listed on the 2nd Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in April 2004 and was transferred to the 1st Section in March 2005.

	Under what code and category is Telepark listed?
	Telepark is listed under stock code 3738 in the Information and Communications category.

	What is the number of unit stock?
	Telepark has not adopted unit stock system and made it possible to purchase single unit stock so that individual investors can casually take up equity investment.

	When does the fiscal term end and when are the record dates for dividends?
	The fiscal year ends on March 31. The record date for the year-end dividend is March 31 and September 30 for the interim dividend.

What is Telepark's Dividend Policy?

Telepark recognizes the appropriate return of profits to its shareholders as an important management issue and aims to achieve above a 30% level of dividend payout ratio. The dividend payout ratio reached 36% for the fiscal year ended March 2007, and we forecast 36.6% for the fiscal year ending March 2008. Telepark is committed to maintaining a high level of returns on its profits. Click here for more information on our Dividend Policy

	When and where does Telepark hold its Annual General Meeting of shareholders?
	The Annual General Meeting of Shareholders is normally held in late June in the vicinity of our headquarters (Koraku, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo).