The government will reject a Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. business plan if it fails to promote competition among NTT group companies, telecom ministry officials said Monday.
The initial proposal is expected to be submitted in September.
If NTT refuses to make concessions, in the event the plan is rejected, the government may drastically review the structure of the NTT group, a senior official said in reference to the possibility of dismantling NTT as a holding company.
In May, the Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications Ministry asked the telecom giant to submit a plan to promote groupwide competition by cutting its equity stakes in group companies, opening its regional telecom networks to other carriers and promoting efficient operation at its two regional carriers -- NTT East Corp. and NTT West Corp.
In particular, NTT is at odds with the ministry over reducing the company's equity stake in mobile phone operator NTT DoCoMo Inc. and long-distance and international phone arm NTT Communications Corp. to less than 50 percent. NTT owns 64 percent of NTT DoCoMo and all of NTT Communications.
NTT maintains it has to consider its shareholders' interests in deciding whether to lower its stakes in group companies.
The carrier is expected to reject the ministry's call for cutting stakes in the two group companies. Its plan, however, is likely to include the opening of regional telecom networks and layoffs involving some 110,000 workers.