At the same time, Japanese web retailer Rakuten Inc. is jumping into the market as a budget provider. "Market sentiment is not as good as it used to be, and investor appetite may not be so strong," said Yasuhide Yajima, chief economist at NLI Research Institute in Tokyo. "Still, their focus is on data, AI and communication — industries where they can anticipate growth, so investors can't exclude SoftBank from their target." Domestic telco operations, which include wireless, broadband and fixed-line services, generated 1.8 trillion yen in revenue and 446.9 billion yen of income in the six months to September. Mobile phone offerings accounted for more than 60 percent of sales. SoftBank has close to 34 million wireless subscribers in Japan. Japan's mobile carriers have come under government scrutiny for high phone bills and convoluted pricing plans.