Bom-de-de-bom-bom-bom-de-de-bom–BONANZA!…Japan’s market for mobile content for the JFY to March 31, 2003 shot to 394.1 billion Yen, up 31% according to a survey conducted by the Mobile Contents Forum (MCF), reports Asia Biztech today.
Today, WWJ’s Portable Reportable presents a mobile marketing case study involving Shizuoka Bank which used the opt-in “Message Free” free email marketing service on i-mode to grab new, younger customers for its “My Car Loan” campaign. Message Free is just one of the mobile marketing services on i-mode operated by D2 Communications on behalf of NTT DoCoMo. This case study is an excellent example of how a wide variety of consumer-facing companies, not just mobile content providers — like ring tone sites or screen image providers — are using the mobile channel for effective marketing via web, pull email, push email, and even interactive voice. Full program run-time: 4:31Portable Reportable audio updates are short, 3- to 5-minute news items in MP3 format. You can listen via PC or download and copy to your portable player for tomorrow morning’s commute. — Eds.
Today, Portable Reportable looks at the future of cell phone broadcasting and consider what will happen when cell phones will be able to received digital TV broadcasts. NTT DoCoMo and KDDI have quite different plans on how consumers will use digital TV. KDDI appears to be planning to allow the handset to receive digiTV and then use the phone’s 3G data connection as the viewer feedback, marketing, and sales channel — similar to how the FM Keitai works now with analog radio and the preinstalled BREW application.
Full program run-time: 5:01Portable Reportable audio updates are short, 3- to 5-minute news items in MP3 format. You can listen via PC or download and copy to your portable player for tomorrow morning’s commute. — Eds.
Sony’s design flaws, and ultimate failure, also came from a misunderstanding of its target audience, as well as poor design. But size wasn’t the problem, rather it was usability by the American consumer. (An interesting and almost-compelling analysis of differences between US and Japanese consumers that goes beyond the odious “American thumbs are too big” argument; well worth a read as this issue directly applies to 3G cell phones. — Ed.)
Originally published as a guest column in Fierce Wireless, 9 June – Ed.
If 2001-2003 has been Phase 1 of Japan’s 3G era (all three major carriers launched W-CDMA or CDMA 2000 networks in this period), then 2004 is definitely shaping up to be Phase 2 — and the difference is that now Japan 3G is moving overseas. The assault is being led in part by Japan’s keitai makers who, under NTT DoCoMo’s lash, have invested heavily in sophisticated new terminals and are now looking to markets further afield in order to generate additional ROI.
Boy-oh-Boy! We are absolutely delighted to have real-time credit-card processing on the WWJ site, courtesy of eSellerate! We have just switched the new subscription processing system ON, and will do a full announcement in this week’s newsletter; there are also new pricing, term, and multi-user-discount options. If you have any problems whatsoever with subscribing, please drop us a note (send mail to support [at] wirelesswatch.jp) and we’ll get back to you immediately. More announcements shortly…
