EAccess Ltd applied on Dec 3 to Japan’s Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications (MPHPT) for a license to build test stations for a mobile telecommunications service adopting TD-CDMA. EAccess, an asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) operator, aims to launch a wireless ADSL service specializing in data communications. The company has applied for several base stations in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
Most of Japan’s next-generation cell phones are going to have 2 megapixel cameras next year, right? There is already a supply crunch developing for CMOS sensors, right? The global shipment of cellies is going to near 490 million units in 2004, right? And, finally, Japanese makers are gearing up for an assault on the world market via Vodafone, right? Probably not, don’t think so, well if you are very lucky and Vodafone central is a long way from Tokyo- there is something fishy about Vodafone talking up its love of Japanese handsets…these are the sorts of answers that you get if you talk to IDC Japan’s top wireless device analyst Michito (Mitch) Kimura, who has his own take on things. Recently, WWJ listened in on Kimura’s presentation about camera phone trends, followed up with an interview, and came back with the following snapshot.
Fujitsu Labs Ltd. said it has developed has developed a gallium nitride (GaN) high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) amplifier capable of 174 watts at 63 volts at 40 percent efficiency. If that doesn’t mean much to you, Fujitsu claims the HEMT will enable it to make more energy efficient 3 (or wasn’t that 4?) G base stations…
Mobile operator M1 of Singapore has awarded Nokia a contract to supply equipment and services for the second phase of its WCDMA 3G network rollout. In addition, the deal includes GSM/GPRS equipment to enhance GSM coverage and GPRS capacity. The deal follows successful rollout of Phase 1 WCDMA 3G network and continued GSM subscriber growth and increase demand in data traffic.
What’s up with all the analysis of Vodafone recently? The slow uptake of its W-CDMA service and failure to keep up with Au/ KDDI’s cdma1x/WIN service in terms of new subscribers has some press and analysts questioning the carrier’s strategy. But let’s look at the larger picture: Vodafone had 93,200 subscribers at the end of November — its first year of 3G service. That’s hardly a “ringing” endorsement of VGS (Vodafone Global Standard.) On the other hand, it’s not bad at all for a service which has not had the benefit of a high-profile promotional campaign. In fact, Vodafone has only put out a few low-key displays at official shops. In contrast, NTT DoCoMo had 142,400 subscribers at the same point in the life of FOMA and it had been promoting FOMA every chance it could. Now it has decent handsets at bargain prices and a network that it claims covers 99.6 percent of Japan’s population, DoCoMo is adding about 300,000 subscribers per month. So let’s not forget that it’s really still very early days for Vodafone.
Looking to cement its current lead in the China cellphone market, Motorola said Monday that it is considering tie-ups with Chinese firms to develop 3G handsets that use China’s TD-SCDMA standard. In a telephone interview with Reuters, Motorola’s director of global strategy on 3G, Bob Schukai said that if China does adopt the domestically-developed TD-SCDMA, Motorola’s best business plan would be working through local partnership deals to draw on local expertise.
Last December, professor Philip Sidel of the International University of Japan served up some nasty lessons for believers in location-based marketing strategies (WWJ video here). Last week, Sidel and professor Glenn E. Mayhew presented their latest findings on mobile Internet (MobileNet) usage in Japan, and have come up with a new set of surprises, some nasty… and some nice. At a lecture at the American Chamber of Commerce Japan’s e-Business forum, the Sidel/ Mayhew team again cut swaths through several layers of hype and slashed up several misconceptions marketers might have. In our recent Viewpoint article, we noted how surprised some European consultants were about the lack of business apps in Japan’s MobileNet. Now prepare for some more; data gleaned in their most recent study shows that less than half of Japan’s MobileNet users plug in to keitai Internet for more for more than 5 minutes a day, and, perhaps, only a quarter of users are willing to pay for content and this is just the beginning.
Five telecom terminal makers will soon get permission to join an alliance of companies involved in the development of China’s home-grown wireless communication standard. “We have singled them out from 17 applicants this year to strengthen our alliance,” said Yang Hua, secretary-general of the TD-SCDMA Alliance. Established in October last year, the alliance was launched by eight domestic companies to develop the standard.
Do you have BREW contents that you want to put into 10 million cellphone browsers? We know somebody who wants to hear from you. Spun out of trading powerhouse Nissho Iwai and backed by camera giant Olympus, ITX E-Globaledge Corp. is a small company hungry to meet U.S., Korean and European ventures to introduce your BREW content, and your cutting-edge soft- and hardware, to a company with a huge appetite: KDDI. More than just a go-between to help customize ideas for the Japanese market, ITX also creates its own content. More interestingly, it recently put $4 million into a Seattle-based venture blending XML. Full Program Run-time 18:28
Korea is set to launch the controversial W-CDMA mobile service in December, despite growing concerns about overlapping investment and the poor chance of commercial success. SK Telecom Co., the country’s largest mobile carrier, and KTF Co., ranked second, said they would push ahead with W-CDMA services, as planned.
