3G
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3G

NTT DoCoMo to Stop Accepting PHS Applications

DoCoMo announced today that they will stop accepting new applications for PHS (Personal Handyphone System) mobile phone services as of April 30, 2005. As a result of the decision, DoCoMo will post an approximately 61 billion-yen impairment loss on a consolidated basis and an approximately 21 billion-yen special loss on a non-consolidated basis. Accordingly, DoCoMo has amended its consolidated and non-consolidated financial results forecasts for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2005 (April 1, 2004 – March 31, 2005), which were announced on October 29, 2004.

NEC to Launch New Mobile Phones in Russia

NEC Corporation today announced its new step to expand global mobile business, the entry into mobile solution business in Russia. NEC revealed new mobile phones “e242” and “e101” to Russia. NEC also reveals its new branding strategy and slogan “Get Personal”, which is in line with NEC’s global corporate statement “Empowered by Innovation ( TM )”, to further expand its mobile business in Russia. Starting with these two new models with three color variation as one of the key products, NEC will pursue its new strategy to enter into the wider-range product market segment to appeal to various consumers in Russia. With the new and specific target market segmentation, NEC will further launch products answering to the requirements from every customer of each segment.

Mobile Intelligence from CEATEC Japan

Panasonic CEATEC TourIn today’s program, we speak with Yutaka Nakamae from Panasonic’s Corporate External Relations Group who met with us during last fall’s CEATEC consumer electronics show in Tokyo. While there’s plenty of eye candy, including Panny’s 900iV (released in mid-2004), some skin-able models to please those who can’t decide on their favorite color and the very cool GSM X700 (now on sale in Europe), the real intelligence relates to finding our who’s boss in the carrier/manufacturer relationship (Hint: Who owns the customer?). Today’s proggy is not only a fun one — showing some great cellys from the October CEATEC show — but it also reconfirms the reality of the relationship between cell-phone makers and cellular operators in Japan — in this case, Panasonic and DoCoMo.

Vodafone seeks revival in Japan

Vodafone Group, the world’s largest cellphone company by sales, will use its experience with high-speed wireless services in Japan to stay ahead of competitors in less advanced markets, said Shiro Tsuda, who runs the Japanese unit. “Japan is way ahead in 3G,” Tsuda, president of Vodafone K.K., said in an interview Friday.

HSDPA Technology Primer

If the acronym HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) means nothing to you, read on because the technology behind this string of letters could soon significantly change the way you work and play on your mobile device. The technology, a rival to the EV-DO standard in CDMA deployed in the US and parts of Asia, promises something surprisingly missing in early 3G mobile networks — high data speeds similar to those of fixed-line ADSL services.

NTT DoCoMo to Stop Accepting New Prepaid Mobile Phone Applications

DoCoMo announced today that the companies will stop accepting new applications for “Pre-Call®” prepaid mobile phones on March 31, 2005. From April, the company will suggest to users that they subscribe to alternative services, such as mobile phone rental services or “Limit Plus,” which enables users to limit monthly charges. DoCoMo launched the Pre-Call service in May 1999. The number of subscribers peaked at about 210,000 in March 2001, after which the number began decreasing. About 80,000 customers were using the service as of January 2005.