Smartphones Stir Up Japan’s Mobile Market

In Japan, phones and PDAs are viewed within the industry as separate vertical markets. DoCoMo and other carriers - who control the development and sale of cellular devices - have not seen fit to create a hybrid phone/PDA. Is it fear of loss of control over the subscriber billing relationship? Fear of allowing foreign makers - like Nokia - into the market? Is it the lack of Japanese third-party developers who have worked with overseas platforms (like Symbian)? Today’s program looks at a company helping to stir up a market that needs some stirring.