Targeting the enterprise market, KDDI has announced two VoIP telephony solutions: AirIP’s Office Freedom, designed to operate using the newly released E02SA handset via 802.11g, and Fujitsu’s Mobile Office, which appears able to run on a wider range of handsets using a BREW application. The Office Freedom system also suggests that GPS functionality will be available to track employee current locations… and recent movements!
E-paper is being considered for use in not only a few announced applications, but in a wide range of perhaps less obvious applications. Examples of such applications include various cards, such as smart cards and electronic money, displays for devices like universal serial bus (USB) memory, advertising above windows or on hand straps in trains, rear displays on mobile phones, and mobile viewers. E-paper is also being eyed for possible use in products like home appliances and toys.
ACCESS CO., a global provider of mobile content delivery and internet access technologies, today announced its intent to acquire IP Infusion Inc., a leading provider of intelligent network software for enhanced IP services, with a total consideration of approximately USD 50 million (approximately JPY 5.8 billion). IP Infusion will become a wholly owned subsidiary of ACCESS after the completion of the transaction, which is scheduled in early March and subject to the approval from IP Infusion’s shareholders.
NTT DoCoMo, Inc., Renesas Technology Corp., Fujitsu Limited, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and Sharp Corporation today announced that they will jointly develop a comprehensive mobile phone platform combining a single-chip LSI for dual mode handsets supporting HSDPA /W-CDMA and GSM/GPRS/EDGE, and core software such as operating systems. The new mobile phone platform will help accelerate the global adoption of W-CDMA services including FOMA, and lower the costs of these handsets. The companies expect to have the platform developed around Q2/FY2007 (July-September).
Over the past 12 to 18 months the mobile division of KDDI, known here as ‘au,’ has been leading the way in Japan’s cellular marketplace. During a recent interview at the 3G World Forum, one European visitor asked the seemingly obvious question, “What is the main reason for their success?” 
The reasonable answer is that it’s actually a combination of several factors, but one thing stands out. Compared to the NTT DoCoMo and Vodafone business models, au has a very tight focus on the domestic market. Their attention to detail in customer service and product offerings is not challenged by how the product mix and content offerings might fit into the company’s global strategy — and it shows. This has allowed au to take the lead in areas like GPS, flat-rate data and faster networks, all provided to the consumer on affordable price plans. The carrier now offers a full suite of popular and useful services ranging from Navitime, EZ auctions, EZ book, EZ channel, EZ games, and EZ FM to (recently introduced) mobile IM (‘Hello Messenger’), mobile blogging (‘DuoBlog’) and Lismo.
Looking again at au’s recent blitz of cutting-edge models at Designing Studio last week, just in time for Japan’s peak spring sales season, we were truly impressed; it will be a tough choice for shoppers. The phones and services strongly illustrate one of the most fundamental and important learnings about Japan’s mobile success that we’ve been trumpeting for years.
NTT DoCoMo just announced three prototype high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) handsets developed with Fujitsu, Motorola (Wow!) and NEC. HSDPA, a high-speed packet transmission technology standardized by the Third Generation Partnership Project, offers a theoretical maximum downlink speed of about 14 Mbps. The handsets will be demonstrated at DoCoMo’s booth at the 3GSM World Congress 2006 in Barcelona, Spain from February 13 to 16.
DoCoMo aims to start HSDPA services sometime between July and September 2006 (as per our recent bold prediction for 2006 — Eds).
