(Japan Corporate News via NewsEdge) NTT DoCoMo announced that it plans to acquire approximately 6 million shares of PLDT, equivalent to 30 billion yen ($254 million) from an affiliate of First Pacific, PLDT's largest shareholder.
DoCoMo expects to finalize the specific terms of the transaction after discussions with First Pacific.
DoCoMo, which acquired 12,633,486 PLDT shares, approximately 6.7% of total issued and outstanding shares, from NTT Communications in March of this year, will have a total of approximately 19 million shares, or approximately 9.9% of total issued and outstanding shares, after this latest acquisition.
DoCoMo may consider purchasing additional shares in the future, the firm said.
DoCoMo's additional investment will further strengthen its relationship with PLDT and Smart Communications, PLDT's wholly owned mobile subsidiary.
Smart, with DoCoMo's backing, intends to launch the i-mode service and expand W-CDMA services in the Philippines and promote international roaming services between Japan and the Philippines.
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