New Business Model Innovation in the Mobile Telecommunication Industry — A Case Study of SoftBank

This chapter analyzes and studies global innovation based on the IoT, AI and robot strategy of SoftBank, a major telecommunication carrier in Japan, from the perspective of holistic strategic management. In recent years, Softbank acquired the British company Arm Holdings. Arm’s main business is semiconductor research and development, and its technologies are used in various electronic devices including smartphones. IoT is the endpoint of Arm-developed technologies, and the company expects to supply approximately one trillion chips for IoT over the next 20 years. By engaging in collaborative innovation with partner companies like SoftBank, which is proactively developing communications, robotics, AI and big data technologies, Arm aims to build ecosystems, which it could not achieve singlehandedly, for businesses in the automotive, construction and agricultural markets in particular.This chapter presents an overview of the dynamism of Softbank’s strategy transformation and explains in detail its global corporate strategy and innovation. The chapter also analyzes and observes innovation processes made possible through strategic innovation capabilities (SICs) from the perspective of holistic leadership, which is an element of holistic strategic management that creates a triad system as discussed in Chapter 2.