NTT Docomo will phase out its proprietary set of emoji — known as Docomo Emoji — starting with smartphones released in late June, according to an announcement from the telecom giant, ending a 26-year run that helped shape the visual language of mobile communication.
Beginning next month, newly released Android smartphones and feature phones sold by Docomo will no longer include the carrier’s original emoji. Samsung’s Galaxy series will follow suit starting with devices launching in July or later. Galaxy phones will instead use Samsung’s own emoji designs, while other Android and Docomo-branded feature phones will adopt Google’s Noto Color Emoji set.
The transition won’t be limited to new models. From October, some existing Galaxy devices will receive software updates that remove Docomo’s emoji from the system.
