Wireless penetration in Japan surpasses 100% in the 15-64 age bracket

According to the Statistics Bureau of Japan, the population of the country stood at 127,740,000 at the beginning of February 2006. If we break down that number by age brackets, we shall learn that there are 84,330,000 people in the age group between 15 and 64 year olds. According to TCA, the total number of Japanese wireless subscribers in February was 90,767,700, which is much more of the number of population in the 15-64 age bracket.

Of course, there are still people in that age group who do not own a cellphone, while others have two or more cellphones, keeping separate accounts for personal and/or business use. What this data shows is that Japan’s market growth will depend on the replacement sales and further penetration into the youngest and oldest age groups. Tough times await the numerous domestic handset makers and wireless operators.