The Japanese people do bow to each other a lot. It is common even to see people bowing while talking on the phone. Why do the Japanese bow so much? Bowing started as a gesture of presenting the neck, one's weakest part, to a person with high status, and grew from that into a display of respect. The respect stays the same whether the other person can see you or not. So, if the respect is heartfelt, the bowing comes naturally even on the telephone.