Wireless Watch Japan
Search Results for: felica

Search Results for: felica


3G, DoCoMo, FOMA Milestones in Japan

April is emerging to be a milestone month in Japan’s 3G rollout. According to the most recent Telecom Carriers Association figures. Milestone One: Japan added a million new 3G subscribers in April. Milestone Two: April’s surge also simultaneously brought the total number of 3G users here to over 17.7 million. So what you say? Well, this also meant that for the first time Japan’s 3G user base passed 20% of Japan’s 82 million mobile subscriber base, or 21.6% to be precise, as of April 30! Milestone Three: DoCoMo added an incredible 530,500 FOMA subscribers. Not only was this up 483% on the same month a year ago, it was the FIRST TIME ever that DoCoMo beat KDDI au in net 3G adds!!

Vodaphone KK Unleashes 2.5G Terminal Blitz

It’s been a year or so, but finally Vodafone K.K. is attempting an aggressive rollout of impressive (albeit) 2/2.5G handset terminals clearly aimed at fun– and the young. Over the next couple of months the company is adding 5 terminals [.pdf here], including the new V602 from Sharp and V601 from Toshiba that have mulitimedia features even more impressive than those aboard DoCoMo 900i series, as well as an improved radio phone from Sanyo and a clearer TV picture from Sharp. Better still, last week’s news that Vodafone has decided to adopt a FeliCa compatible removable solution for contactless payments shows the company is definitely on board with promoting the mobile phone away from a communications/ game device into become a viable e-commerce tool not only here in Japan, but potentially accross the vast Vodafone empire.

DoCoMo's 506i Series Launch Event

DoCoMo's 506i Launch EventWe’re not too sure about NTT DoCoMo’s motivation for fielding the first three models of the new 506i-series second-gen cellys. Sure, Big D have got to stay in front of the public eye with new models, new colours, etc. Japan’s consumer terminal market is nothing if not intensely competitive and trying to sell six-month old cell phones — which have often already lost 50% of their value at retail — is like, Oh, Soooo six-months old… Missing a slot in the handset upgrade cycle can be costly, as No. 3 competitior Vodafone has found to their regret. Full Program Run-time 14:32

Vodafone Happy Talk?

Wireless Watchers will have noted that it’s changing-of-the-guard season in Japan, with NTT DoCoMo’s Keiji Tachikawa about to move on just as the company enters a self-described “paradigm shift.” We believe we know what his successor, Executive Vice President Shiro Tsuda, will be up to — mainly because DoCoMo strives at every opportunity these days to tell one and allit’s not a carrier any more, but rather a budding e-commerce service platform provider. More intriguing, however, are the senior staff developments at Vodafone’s struggling Japan opco, Vodafone KK (struggling, that is, through a device dry spell that won’t see any significant new 3G models out until the fall). Big V has just shipped over a new COO, David Jones, who has arrived, we guess, with a briefcase full of spring-cleaning items. Certainly the appointment of a new chief operating officer hints at a change of gear for the company. Is this a push to boost the lagging 3G provider from neutral to at least first gear?

DoCoMo's New 3G Service Model

DoCoMo's New 3G Service ModelOn March 24, NTT DoCoMo president Keiji Tachikawa held his routine monthly press briefing and, with what is becoming a regular feature of his recent speeches, pounded the drum once more about the “Paradigm Shift” DoCoMo plans for its services from fiscal 2004 onwards. In a nutshell, this means introducing flat rates for packet data on June 1st, but, “We did not want to open up the window to all customers from day one,” he told reporters. Aided by a flashy Powerpoint presentation, Dr. Tachikawa also announced new anti-spam and anti-virus measures that will be implemented over the next few months. Full Program Run-time 20:25

Survey of Japan's Wireless Market

Survey of Japan's Wireless MarketResearch house and consumer survey firm INFO PLANT recently held a seminar on the main themes and directions of Japan’s wireless market in 2004. INFO PLANT’s C-News editor-in-chief Tomoki Sakaino began with some interesting comparisons between the Korea and Japan markets before offering unique insights into the prospects for FOMA and FeliCa this year; he also reviewed studies into attitudes about DoCoMo’s new 900i-series 3G handsets and TV broadcast content for mobile devices. Full Program Run-time 19:28