The company wants to create a standard for cellphones ahead of Microsoft.

To forestall Microsoft Corp.'s attempt to dominate cellphone operating systems as well as lower handset prices, NTT DoCoMo Inc. plans to adopt an OS based on the open source Linux software, sources said.

The company is already in talks with handset manufacturers to develop the system and aims to market its first Linux-based cellphone-a third-generation (3G) model based on its Foma platform-in the autumn of 2004.

The nation's largest cellphone carrier is seeking not only to lower the cost of its phones through standardization, but to establish a global standard ahead of U.S. software giant Microsoft Corp.

DoCoMo's cellphones currently run on operating systems developed separately by each handset manufacturer, which also develop their own software to run on the operating systems.

Standardization would therefore coordinate development and slash production costs.

Manufacturers are expected to comply with DoCoMo's request to replace their systems with a unified Linux standard apparently for fear of being left out in the cold, industry sources said.

At the same time, DoCoMo is also looking into the possibility of developing a standard based on an OS made by Symbian Ltd., a British firm whose OS is used widely in Europe and in some handsets in Japan.

Compared to its second-generation handsets, DoCoMo's Foma cellphones have higher production costs.

DoCoMo is also considering developing common parts for cellphones as a way to cut costs, and is looking into the feasibility of producing, for example, large-scale integration (LSI) circuits, with U.S. giants Intel Corp., Texas Instruments Inc. and other big-name companies.

``If progress is made on (OS and parts) standardization, price cuts of about a few thousand yen for each mobile phone could be achieved,'' a DoCoMo official said.

Microsoft waded into the cellphone OS market by tying up with Motorola Inc. in the United States. It has also shown a keen interest in the Japanese market.

Compared to the almost hermetically sealed Microsoft OS, Linux is an open-source, easy-to-modify, and license-free product.

Because DoCoMo has picked Linux to incorporate into its 3G cellphones designed for worldwide use, the move is expected to have widespread ramifications for the cellphone operating system initiative, industry sources said.

And the ball is now in Microsoft's court.(IHT/Asahi: December 3,2003) (12/03)