Japan’s Matsushita Electric (Panasonic) is said to be considering forming a joint venture in the mobile-phone sector with NEC Corp. A Matsushita spokesman apparently declined to comment further. This handset vendor consolidation story has been brewing for some time now. Based on the tone of local reports, we expect a formal announcement in the coming days.
SoftBank announced that it has established a new company, Mobile Media Planning Corp., which aims to conduct technical research on MediaFLO and plan new services utilizing such technology. Developed by QUALCOMM, the system enables distribution of multichannel broadcast optimized for mobile communications, including Clipcast, and distribute digital terrestrial broadcasts to mobile terminals and other devices. This technology is considered as one of the three major technologies following satellite broadcast and 1Seg broadcast, and it enables real time broadcast of 20 channels on one TV channel portion of frequency band (6MHz). We interviewed MediaFlo’s Ali Zamari during the recent Wireless Japan trade-show in Tokyo.
Mobile Media Planning plans to provide digital-tv broadcast distribution services for mobile terminals and other devices utilizing such technology for the development of mobile communications business of the SOFTBANK Group. Also, Mobile Media Planning will work on the study of technical potential of MediaFLO, by participating in the activities organized by external parties such as the VHF/UHF-band efficient use working group in Information and Communications Council, which discusses the proposal of multimedia broadcast technology including MediaFLO, and FLO Forum where supporting enterprises from around the world, such as QUALCOMM, participate.
Currently in it’s 11th year, Wireless Japan is evolving from Japan’s largest wireless & Mobile network technologies and services trade show into one of the largest in Asia. This event has become the hub of wireless dedicated gatherings in Asia with over 150 exhibitors and 30,000 attendees expected. Running July 19 – 21 at the space-age Tokyo BigSite exhibition center the annual event is attended, and endorsed, by most of the major players in mobile.
WWJ was on the scene, as usual, we have video interviews with Qualcomm about their new MediaFlo digital tv efforts and a hands-on demo with HTC’s new smartphone coming soon from DoCoMo. We also attended the Mobile Entertainment Forum session this afternoon and will have some of the presentations from that coming online as well. Meanwhile here’s a quick peek at some of the sights and sounds from the show floor today and links to our coverage from the event in years past.
GeoVector has announced the release of a new 3D search technology which will allow users to obtain information by selecting objects on a map displayed in 3D on the screen of their mobile phone. This 3D map, generated via GPS technology and a built-in compass, is said to create an intuitive means for the user to interact with the world around them. GeoVector’s 3D Search Technology will be presented at the NEC booth at Wireless Japan 2006, to be held July 19-21 in Tokyo.
The pending Japan arrival of Research in Motion (RIM)’s hyperpopular BlackBerry email device, widely known as the ‘CrackBerry’ for its simple, efficient and addictive delivery of corporate email, will inject a new dimension into this country’s complex device and service matrix.
A wise move or a sign of desperation? These two viewpoints seem to characterize media, pundits’ and bloggers’ responses to last month’s announcement that DoCoMo would bring the BlackBerry email device into Japan, in partnership with RIM, based in Canada. Our own take on it was: Who Cares? WWJ was mindful that “virtually everyone in Japan’s workforce already has an always-on, fully connected email device right in their back pocket — in other words, a phone!”
Furthermore, before and since then, there has been more news, helping make it even more difficult to assess the BlackBerry’s prospects.
According to the pundits, NTT DoCoMo’s decision to import the BlackBerry is either (a) a master stroke aimed at securing the giant carrier’s corporate mobile offerings as 3G competition heats up in 2006/07, or (b) expensive folly that will see enterprise sales teams saddled with a clunky, ‘not-made-here’ device that competes poorly if at all against universal 3G phones that already receive push mail in real time, thank you very much (and some media reports have stated the first Japan BlackBerrys won’t even accept Japanese text input). The truth, however, is probably somewhere between these extremes, and so WWJ went straight to the source.
Last week saw an interesting double play for mobile devices in Japan as both NTT DoCoMo and Willcom announced new phones — DoCoMo’s 7-Series — or new PDAs — Sharp’s oddly named W-Zero3[es]. These, combined with the continuing speculation on the this fall’s entry of RIM’s Blackberry email device (will it have Japanese text input capability?), made it a busy week for wireless watchers.
On Tuesday, WWJ was first on the Web with a full report and images of DoCoMo’s new 7-Series, a mix of models from Sharp, Panasonic, NEC and Mitsubishi, as well as from US maker Motorola…
