In the summer 2008 when the iPhone was released in Japan, there were numerous talks that it will flop and that it is not suitable for the Japanese market. Softbank’s CEO has another opinion about this, and he confirmed that the iPhone is selling massive amounts in Japan. Here is a take from the Wall Street Journal:

For Softbank’s chairman and chief executive, the company’s role as the only official supplier of the iPhone in Japan gives it a strong attraction in a consumer market characterized by a fascination for gadgetry.  ”When we launched the iPhone [in the summer of 2008], some people said those phones were not suited for Japanese cellphone users,” said Masayoshi Son at a news conference. Most Japanese cellphones are smaller and lighter than the Apple device.  ”But those [skeptics] have been proven completely wrong … The iPhone is selling so well that we are really feeling the boost from it,” Mr. Son said. He declined to say how many iPhones Softbank had sold, but described the handset as “the biggest contributor to third-quarter handset sales,” and “a major contributor to growth in data communication revenue.”

[via]