Japan's NTT DoCoMo and South Korean partner KTF will jointly develop a smartphone using Google Android software for launch next year. DoCoMo owns 10 percent of KTF and the two companies have been jointly procuring handsets to cut costs.
Smartphones, which combine the capabilities of personal computers and mobile phones, have been gaining popularity in Japan, in part led by the July introduction of Apple's iPhone.
DoCoMo aims to introduce the Google phone at a price about 20 percent lower than existing smartphones, as it will save costs on software development using the Android software, the report said. Google is offering the software for free.
The new phone would be the first Google phone to be sold by Japanese and South Korean carriers.
A DoCoMo spokesman said the company had not yet decided to launch an Android-based phone next year.
