SoftBank's fixed-line phone services were temporarily disrupted in Japan again on Monday after a service outage over the weekend.
The telecommunications carrier said that Monday's issue, which began around 8:30 a.m., is believed to have affected about 74,000 customers and other users of "Otoku Line" and "Otoku Hikari Denwa" services in parts of eastern Japan. The services were fully restored at 12:01 p.m.
The disruption was caused by a problem with telecommunications equipment.
While users were able to make outgoing calls, including emergency calls, many had trouble receiving incoming calls, according to SoftBank, which apologized for the inconvenience.
Over the weekend, the company's fixed-line services were hit with a 14-hour disruption from 1:46 p.m. on Saturday to 3:53 a.m. on Sunday.
"It is extremely regrettable that disruptions have occurred in telecommunications services, which are key infrastructure," communications minister Junji Suzuki told a news conference Monday.
"We will take appropriate measures based on a detailed report (from SoftBank) and in accordance with relevant laws and regulations," the minister added.