Head 'em up and Mova Out! More New DoCoMo Cellies
Cellcos and handset manufacturers here are counting on the seemingly limitless Japanese craving to trade up to the trendiest and newest feature-packed cellies to push cash flow forward. Right behind the recent roll out of DoCoMo’s shiny, feature-packed 3G FOMA 901i-series comes a new line of four “Mova” (the carrier’s 2G brand) handsets targeting niche buyers. Lets take a look at these babies as each one has a distinctive feature targeting a specific, finicky, not-yet-ready-for-3G keitai shopper.
Niche marketing is undeniably cost-intensive — all those handsets require development, marketing and manpower to support. If 3G is where DoCoMo wants everyone to be, why continue to innovate within the older, 2G Mova line?
As if Japanese phones weren’t mobese enough, KDDI is first out of the gate with music distribution for cell phones — allowing multi-slackers to download artists’ songs in their entirety right to the handset. Launching this month, users of EZ Chaku Uta Full (Chaku – download, uta – song, full – in its entirety, get it?) will have access to 10,000 songs from six web sites covering everything from pop princess Hilary Duff to indie artists. Playlist and music sites are set to expand over the coming year. The company also plans to enable downloads through their ‘NOW On Air’ FM radio subscription service, though a start date has not yet been set. Content fee per song should average around 315 yen and transmission speed will hit a maximum of 2.4 Mbps under KDDI’s ‘Double Flat’ fixed packet charge service.
DoCoMo have just launched their next generation FOMA handsets at a splashy event at Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel — complete with bikini-clad beauties, big-name stars, and a sound and light show that blasted their five new 901i handsets into the spotlight. The D901i, F901iC, N901iC, P901i, and SH901iC models all come equipped with a 2-megapixel camera, stereo speakers, and enhanced audio and video for even more multi-slacking fun. In a ‘Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!’ press event move, DoCoMo announced that only the SH901iC will be ready for nationwide release on 26 November. Other handsets will ‘follow’ with no specific release dates given. DoCoMo says sales of FOMA cellys stand at 7.3 million. Sales of i-mode-compatible FeliCa e-wallet handsets stand at 600,000 units; infrared signal-compatible handsets, 27.2 million, and bar-code reader terminals, 14 million. Watch our