Japan is unique in that consumer studies show that females use the mobile internet more than their male counterparts and you can see evidence of this in the large number of content sites aimed mainly at women. Beauty Walker and howzy !BEAUTY are examples I’ve posted in the past. Add recently announced Nail Club [.pdf], a nail art simulator for the mobile, to that list. You start with a blank canvas (an unpolished nail) and create your own design using 72 colours, 300 types of airbrush, 200 holograms, 100 3D decorations and 300 gems.
An interesting point to note about “Nail Club” is the unusual way the creators are marketing the application. Instead of the usual monthly subscription model purchased through a mobile site (hey, it’s difficult to navigate those mobile menus when you’ve got nails like Edward Scissorhands), Nail Club will go on sale as a retail package in stores popular with young women in the trendy Tokyo areas of Shibuya, Shinjuku and Roppongi. The retail pack will contain a link to download and a serial number to unlock the application. It’s a good tactic to get the mobile application to exactly the audience who will use it.
By Jan Kuczynski, an analyst at Wireless World Forum
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