Recently Google has licensed Gmail to KDDI Corp, the second largest phone operator in Japan. The service will be branded by KDDI and will operate on their proprietary domain: auone.jp. But the backend will be provided by Google along with all functionality that Gmail accounts would normally have.

Although this might seem a little strange from Google’s part, it fits into place with recent similar actions Google has undertaken in Asia. For example: Google agreed to provide search results for a number of search engines in China.

This strategy allows Google to gain a share of markets in which it doesn’t have a solid position yet and at the same time make a name on the Asian market.