Mobile Users
Mobile Users

Mobile Users

Asia's Largest IT & Digital Trade Show – WPC EXPO 2004

The Asia’s largest IT & Digital Trade Show WPC EXPO 2004 will be held from October 20, Wednesday, through 23, Saturday, at the Tokyo Big Site. The number of exhibitors at the WPC EXPO 10th anniversary will be a total of 323 companies in 1,518 booth units (as of October 5). The show will cover a wide range of digital devices including PCs and peripherals, and also digital home appliances: DVD/HDD recorders, flat-screen televisions, digital cameras, and music players. Furthermore, in the “Business Zone” Hall 1 & 2, forerunner companies from China, Korea and Taiwan will exhibit. Witness the business scene in the Asian countries that lead the world economy.

3G CDMA Industry Achievement Awards Recognize Excellence IN CDMA2000

The CDMA Development Group today announced the winners of the 3G CDMA Industry Achievement Awards, presented yesterday during the CDMA Americas Congress, taking place this week at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Both companies and individuals were recognized for excellence in deploying CDMA2000. The awards were presented by Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDG, and Gerry Flynn, vice president, industry relations of the CDG and director, advanced technology strategy/standards for Verizon Wireless.

Vodafone Giveaway Boosts Share

Vodafone’s cut-price mobile phone calls and its 680,000 SIM card giveaway in Brisbane last month have combined to give the company a back-office headache. Vodafone Australia chief executive Grahame Maher said the company had been unprepared for the popularity of its $79 and $149 capped price monthly call plans. One Vodafone dealer said: “Before the caps we were losing three customers a day. Now we are gaining an extra six.”

MobileTV: Hype or Reality?

With KDDI’s May 2004 announcement that they had developed handsets with embedded digital TV tuners and ample battery life, and with NHK, Mobile Broadcasting Corp., and others promising direct-to-mobile broadcasts, TV is again being widely touted as the “next big thing” for the mobile platform — and not just in Japan. But before we truly see an era of television-keitai convergence, several critical issues must be understood and addressed. Many of these are fundamental flaws in the concept of mobile phone-TV convergence, and suggest that we are simply witnessing the introduction of the “next big hype” for the mobile platform.

(Part 1 of a two-part series. Next week: Mobile TV Rocks!, by WWJ chief editor Daniel Scuka.)

Mobile Phone Sales Set Record Pace

Global sales of mobile telephones surged a record 35 percent to 156 million units in the second quarter from the same period in 2003, a study published by the US research group Gartner showed. According to the study, more than 300 million handsets were sold between January and June, leading to a full-year sales forecast of at least 620 million units, compared with 520 million in 2003.

Bluetooth Driving Hands Free

The (enforced) Road Traffic Law comes into effect Nov. 1 banning mobile phone usage while driving. With stiff fines, and even prison terms, announced people will be shopping for alternatives like this new Handzu-Free Bluetooth product. Tested to run on over 40 different DoCoMo Mova handsets these handy little devices will likely see critical mass adoption in Japan during the next year, then again it’s always a good idea to read the fine print..