Update: Clear Channel announced that it is the media company buying the cloud-based music subscription service Thumbplay Music—a deal that was first reported by mocoNews.net. Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but our source says it is likely to be less than 10 percent of the company’s…

One more operator is offering a reduced price for the iPad if you take it on a two-year contract: Softbank in Japan is preparing to launch a deal that offers users a 16GB iPad for free. That means Softbank joins Orange, T-Mobile and Three in the UK, and Orange France,…

Softbank, Japan’s fastest-growing wireless carrier, plans to embed a Twitter application on to the welcome screen of 14 upcoming cellphones in the hopes of driving mobile data adoption through the popular micro-blogging service. Twitter is quickly becoming one of the most popular social-networking sites in Japan, reports The New York…

Verizon Wireless (NYSE: VZ) has joined the Joint Innovation Lab (JIL), an initiative set up a year ago by Vodafone (NYSE: VOD), Softbank and China Mobile to create a single global platform for developers to encourage the creation of a wide range of innovative and useful mobile widgets. The widgets…

Even before the iPhone launched in Japan, there was strong debate over whether or not the gadget could succeed in a market saturated with high-end feature packed cell phones. Now we’re getting more evidence that it may not be selling all that well. According to CrunchGear, Softbank Mobile, Japan’s exclusive…

Japanese carrier Softbank reported quarterly earnings today, which saw its net profit from July-September climb 1.9 percent to 21.7 billion yen ($225 million), boosted by strong sales of the iPhone. The company had its highest monthly net additions in subscribers in 17 consecutive months, adding 521,400 in the quarter. It…

Softbank released its earnings for the first quarter ended 30 June 2008, revealing an 8.1 percent climb in operating profit to 85.1 billion yen ($788 million). Net income fell 22.9 percent to 19.4 billion yen ($180 million) from 25.1 billion yen ($233 million) year on year, while sales declined 2.4…

Japan’s number three carrier released prices and tariffs today, saying it would sell the iPhone starting at 23,040 yen ($215), according to Reuters. Customers will also have to take out a monthly plan costing 7,280 yen ($68)—which includes unlimited data. The carrier, which has built its business on undercutting its…

So what happened to Apple’s iPhone talks in Japan? It was thought that Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) would go with NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM), the country’s largest carrier with its 53.5 million subscribers. Instead they struck a deal with its smallest, but perhaps most aggressive operator, Softbank, which counts 18.8 million…

The march continues: Softbank, Japan’s third-biggest mobile phone operator, will start selling Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) iPhones in the country by the end of this year, the company said…no more details on whether the company would be the exclusive provider of the phones in Japan, reports Reuters. DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM) has…

China Mobile, Softbank and Vodafone have agreed to establish a Joint Innovation Lab (JIL) to promote the development of new mobile technologies, applications and services. It will focus on mobile internet services, starting with mobile widgets. The first plan is to develop a platform for mobile widgets to encourage the…

Thumbplay, the mobile content retailer which is rumored to be on sale, is apparently not. It has raised a big $18 million fifth round, from its previous investors and new ones. The investors in this round include Softbank Capital, i-Hatch Ventures and *Verizon* Investments. We reported wrongly on the new…

Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son warned operators they risked becoming “dumb pipes,” if they did not move swiftly to control mobile content, reports TotalTelecom. Speaking on Wednesday at the MWC, Son said his primary plan when Softbank bought Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) Japan in 2006 was to drive the development of the…