Sony to stop making cell phones for DoCoMo

TOKYO (Reuters) - Sony Corp (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research) has decided to stop making mobile phones for top Japanese cellphone operator NTT DoCoMo Inc (9437.T: Quote, Profile, Research), and focus its resources on more promising overseas markets, the Nikkei business daily said on Monday.

Sony Ericsson, Sony's joint venture with Ericsson (ERICb.ST: Quote, Profile, Research), is the world's fourth-largest mobile phone maker but ranks just sixth in the Japanese market, whose heavy development costs make it tough to make a profit.

It will stop development and production for DoCoMo after supplying new models this summer, the Nikkei said.

However, it plans to keep DoCoMo as a customer by buying mobile phones from other Japanese makers and selling them under the Sony Ericsson brand, the newspaper said.

No one at Sony could be immediately reached for comment.

Sony considered exiting the Japanese mobile phone market altogether, but has decided to keep developing and making phones for No. 2 operator KDDI Corp (9433.T: Quote, Profile, Research) for now, given their alliance in music distribution, the Nikkei said.

Other Japanese handset makers have recently retreated from the mobile phone market.

Mitsubishi Electric Corp (6503.T: Quote, Profile, Research) announced last week that it would exit the market, while Sanyo Electric Co Ltd (6764.T: Quote, Profile, Research) said in January that it would sell its money-losing cellphone business to Kyocera Corp (6971.T: Quote, Profile, Research).

(Reporting by Nathan Layne, editing by Richard Chang)