Korea, Japan trade claims over who has pricier mobile plans

Korea’s telecom operators’ association is disputing a Japanese government report that ranked Seoul as the most expensive city for mobile services. The Korea Telecommunications Operators Association said the comparison used arbitrary criteria and favored Japan. Japan’s ministry compared plans in six cities, including Seoul and Tokyo, using end-of-last-year new-subscriber plans. The dispute comes as Korea prepares for National Assembly audits that will focus on telecom pricing and household communications costs.

Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications released its report on June 30, comparing mobile data plan rates in Seoul, Tokyo, New York, London, Paris and Duesseldorf.

For a 4G plan with 20 gigabytes of data per month, SK Telecom’s Seoul plan was listed at 6,916 yen, the highest among the cities surveyed.

The KTOA said Korea has allowed users to subscribe to either 4G or 5G plans regardless of device since 2023, and carriers introduced unified plans in July.

The association argued that the report should have used Korea’s 4,200 yen plan for the 4G 20 GB comparison instead of the older 6,916 yen plan.

The KTOA also said the report used two-year internet contracts including service fees and modem rental costs, unlike the three-year contracts commonly used in Korea.

Published Oct 2, 2026 4:46 pm KST

Updated Oct 2, 2026 5:39 pm KST

Korean telecoms challenge Japan's telecom pricing survey

A sign is displayed at a telephone retail store in Seoul, Feb. 16, 2023. Yonhap

Korea and Japan are trading claims over the average prices of mobile phone plans, with a Seoul-based telecom operators’ association challenging a recent Japanese government report that ranked Seoul as the most expensive cities for mobile services.

The Korea Telecommunications Operators Association (KTOA) recently issued a statement arguing that the Japanese government’s international comparison of mobile service rates “undermined its objectivity and credibility” by adopting comparison criteria “favorable to Japan and arbitrarily selecting mobile plans for comparison.”

“If the data were compared again using the same criteria, Korea’s mobile service rates would rank third or fourth among the six countries,” the statement read.

“(Japan) should refrain from drawing conclusions about Korea’s mobile service rates based on international comparisons using arbitrary analysis.”

Korea’s three major mobile carriers — SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus — are members of the KTOA.

Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications released a report on June 30 comparing mobile data plan rates in Seoul, Tokyo, New York, London, Paris and Duesseldorf, using the lowest new-subscriber plans offered by each city's leading carrier at the end of last year.

The report converted mobile service rates into Japanese yen after reflecting consumer price levels in each city and compared them by monthly data allowance.

For a 4G plan offering 20 gigabytes (GB) of data per month, SK Telecom’s plan in Seoul cost 6,916 yen ($44), the highest among the cities surveyed, followed by Verizon in New York at 6,684 yen and Telekom Deutschland in Dusseldorf at 4,037 yen.

The cost in Seoul was the highest at 6,916 yen when the data allowance was increased to 50 GB. For 5G plans, Seoul ranked second after New York for 20 GB at 4,902 yen and third for 50 GB.

The KTOA said the data was not based on a fair comparison. Korea has allowed users to subscribe to either 4G or 5G plans regardless of their devices since 2023, enabling 5G smartphone users to choose 4G plans. In July, carriers also introduced unified plans that no longer distinguish between 4G and 5G.

Reflecting these changes, the association argued that the Japanese ministry should have used Korea’s 4,200 yen plan for the 4G 20 GB comparison. Instead, it used an older, more expensive plan priced at 6,916 yen, resulting in Seoul being ranked the most expensive among the six cities.

The association added that Japanese mobile plans, which ranked between the cheapest and fourth-cheapest across the ministry’s comparisons, would fall to between the fourth- and sixth-cheapest if the same criteria were applied.

The KTOA also said in its statement Friday that the report used an inappropriate basis for comparing internet service rates.

“Unlike the three-year contracts commonly used in Korea, the report compared prices based on two-year contracts that included service fees and modem rental costs, resulting in a higher price than generally available in Korea,” the association said. “Even under those conditions, Korea’s rates were among the lowest.”

The KTOA’s point-by-point rebuttal comes as Korea prepares for National Assembly audits of telecom pricing and service quality, which are expected to put renewed focus on household communications expenses and the affordability of mobile services.

“Reducing household expenses is a recurring issue during National Assembly audits, and mobile service rates are among the topics that come up most frequently,” an industry official said. “Given the sensitivity of the issue during the audit season, the industry appears keen to quickly counter statistics that could create a misleading impression.”

韩国电信运营商协会对日本政府一份报告提出异议，该报告将首尔列为移动通信服务费用最高的城市。韩国电信运营商协会表示，该比较采用了武断的标准，且对日本有利。日本通信部对包括首尔和东京在内的六个城市的套餐进行了比较，比较数据为去年年底的新用户套餐。此次争议正值韩国准备接受国会审计之际，审计重点将放在电信定价和家庭通信费用上。

日本总务省于 6 月 30 日发布报告，比较了首尔、东京、纽约、伦敦、巴黎和杜塞尔多夫的移动数据套餐资费。

SK Telecom 的首尔 4G 套餐每月包含 20 GB 的数据流量，价格为 6,916 日元，是调查城市中价格最高的。

韩国电信运营商协会 (KTOA) 表示，自 2023 年起，韩国允许用户无论使用何种设备，都可以选择订阅 4G 或 5G 套餐，运营商已于 7 月推出了统一套餐。

该协会认为，该报告在进行 4G 20GB 流量比较时，应该使用韩国 4200 日元的套餐，而不是较早的 6916 日元套餐。

韩国电信运营商协会 (KTOA) 还表示，该报告使用了包含服务费和调制解调器租赁费的两年期互联网合同，这与韩国常用的三年期合同不同。

发布于2026年10月2日下午4:46（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月2日下午5:39（韩国标准时间）

韩国电信公司对日本电信价格调查提出质疑

2023年2月16日，首尔一家手机零售店外张贴着告示。（韩联社）

韩国和日本就手机套餐的平均价格展开争论，首尔一家电信运营商协会对日本政府最近的一份报告提出质疑，该报告将首尔列为移动服务费用最高的城市。

韩国电信运营商协会（KTOA）近日发表声明称，日本政府对移动服务资费进行国际比较的做法“损害了其客观性和可信度”，因为该比较标准“有利于日本，并且随意选择移动套餐进行比较”。

声明中写道：“如果使用相同的标准再次比较数据，韩国的移动服务费率将在六个国家中排名第三或第四。”

“（日本）不应采用武断的分析方法，通过国际比较来对韩国的移动服务资费得出结论。”

韩国三大移动运营商——SK Telecom、KT 和 LG Uplus——都是 KTOA 的成员。

日本总务省于 6 月 30 日发布了一份报告，比较了首尔、东京、纽约、伦敦、巴黎和杜塞尔多夫的移动数据套餐资费，采用的是各城市主要运营商在去年年底提供的最低新用户套餐资费。

该报告根据各城市的消费价格水平，将移动服务费率换算成日元，并按每月数据流量限额进行比较。

在首尔，SK Telecom 的 4G 套餐每月提供 20 GB 的数据流量，价格为 6,916 日元（44 美元），是调查城市中最高的；其次是纽约的 Verizon，价格为 6,684 日元；以及杜塞尔多夫的德国电信，价格为 4,037 日元。

当数据流量增加到 50GB 时，首尔的费用最高，为 6916 日元。在 5G 套餐方面，首尔 20GB 套餐的价格为 4902 日元，排名第二，仅次于纽约；50GB 套餐的价格则排名第三。

韩国电信运营商协会（KTOA）表示，这些数据并非基于公平的比较。自2023年起，韩国允许用户无论使用何种设备，均可选择4G或5G套餐，这使得5G智能手机用户可以选择4G套餐。今年7月，运营商还推出了不再区分4G和5G的统一套餐。

鉴于这些变化，该协会认为，日本政府在进行4G 20GB流量套餐对比时，应该采用韩国4200日元的套餐。然而，日本政府却采用了价格更高、更老旧的6916日元套餐，导致首尔在六个城市中流量费用排名最高。

该协会补充说，根据该部门的比较，日本移动套餐的价格在最便宜到第四便宜之间，但如果采用相同的标准，价格将下降到第四便宜到第六便宜之间。

韩国电信运营商协会（KTOA）在周五的声明中还表示，该报告使用了不恰当的基准来比较互联网服务费率。

该协会表示：“与韩国常用的三年合约不同，这份报告比较的价格是基于包含服务费和调制解调器租赁费的两年合约，因此价格高于韩国的普遍价格。即便如此，韩国的资费仍然是最低的之一。”

韩国电信运营商协会 (KTOA) 逐条反驳之际，正值韩国准备接受国会关于电信价格和服务质量的审计，预计此次审计将重新聚焦家庭通信支出和移动服务的可负担性。

一位业内人士表示：“在国会审计期间，降低家庭开支是一个反复出现的问题，而移动通信服务资费是其中最常被提及的话题之一。考虑到审计季期间该问题的敏感性，业界似乎急于迅速反驳可能造成误导性印象的统计数据。”