Carriers
Carriers

DoCoMo Announces Nokia 3G Phone

DoCoMo announced today they will start selling the 3G FOMA NM850iG handset, made by Nokia [ .jpg image ], which works on DoCoMo’s 3G FOMA network in Japan and W-CDMA, GSM and GPRS networks overseas where DoCoMo’s global roaming services are available, beginning February 24, 2006. Application to DoCoMo’s WORLD WING 3G roaming service is required to use the handset overseas for voice calls, i-mode, videophone and short messaging service (SMS).The handset connects wirelessly with Bluetooth devices, including PCs for data synchronization and connection to the Internet.

Vodafone K.K.'s Anti-Spam Results

Vodafone K.K. announced its findings today from a December 2005 survey conducted among Vodafone K.K. customers on the effectiveness of anti-spam measures. The results indicated that over 90% of customers using the URL link mail blocking function first introduced in March 2005 experienced a decrease in the number of spam mails received. In addition, approximately 80% of customers using the function said spam mails fell to a level of 0 or 1 per day.

Global 3G Platform Announced

NTT DoCoMo, Inc., Renesas Technology Corp., Fujitsu Limited, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and Sharp Corporation today announced that they will jointly develop a comprehensive mobile phone platform combining a single-chip LSI for dual mode handsets supporting HSDPA /W-CDMA and GSM/GPRS/EDGE, and core software such as operating systems. The new mobile phone platform will help accelerate the global adoption of W-CDMA services including FOMA, and lower the costs of these handsets. The companies expect to have the platform developed around Q2/FY2007 (July-September).

DoCoMo 3G Overtakes KDDI

As WWJ predicted last month, the latest Telecommunication Carriers Association numbers confirm that DoCoMo has indeed gone on to ‘Grab [the] 3G Lead from KDDI.’ OK — so the news isn’t startling given that the trend for the past several months has been growing in DoCoMo’s favor. The news that has been below almost everyone’s radar screens, however, is the exceptional performance of upstart PHS carrier Willcom and its success in attracting new customers compared to third-place 3G carrier Vodafone. The folks over at Willcom posted a net subscriber gain of 80,200 in January compared to Vodafone’s paltry 17,600 result.

NTT DoCoMo, Nippon TV Form Business Tie-Up

DoCoMo said today that it has agreed with Nippon Television Network Corp. (NTV) on a business tie-up to develop content and related services that combine mobile communications and conventional TV programs. Under the agreement, the companies will form a seven-year limited liability partnership, D.N. dream partners LLP, on April 3, 2006 (tentative), with DoCoMo investing five billion yen and NTV five billion yen. The partnership will invest in content and also develop content itself, including TV programs that can be viewed with mobile phones.

KDDI's Competitive Edge in Japan

Over the past 12 to 18 months the mobile division of KDDI, known here as ‘au,’ has been leading the way in Japan’s cellular marketplace. During a recent interview at the 3G World Forum, one European visitor asked the seemingly obvious question, “What is the main reason for their success?” KDDI au's Competitive Edge in Japan by Mobikyo KK

The reasonable answer is that it’s actually a combination of several factors, but one thing stands out. Compared to the NTT DoCoMo and Vodafone business models, au has a very tight focus on the domestic market. Their attention to detail in customer service and product offerings is not challenged by how the product mix and content offerings might fit into the company’s global strategy — and it shows. This has allowed au to take the lead in areas like GPS, flat-rate data and faster networks, all provided to the consumer on affordable price plans. The carrier now offers a full suite of popular and useful services ranging from Navitime, EZ auctions, EZ book, EZ channel, EZ games, and EZ FM to (recently introduced) mobile IM (‘Hello Messenger’), mobile blogging (‘DuoBlog’) and Lismo.

Looking again at au’s recent blitz of cutting-edge models at Designing Studio last week, just in time for Japan’s peak spring sales season, we were truly impressed; it will be a tough choice for shoppers. The phones and services strongly illustrate one of the most fundamental and important learnings about Japan’s mobile success that we’ve been trumpeting for years.