3G usage continues to rise in Japan

Recent research by In-Stat found that contactless payment, GPS, broadcast TV and related services were gaining traction in the Japanese mobile phone market. However, a good revenue-generating business case should be introduced in order for mobile TV phones to ship in bigger numbers. Other valuable bullet-points from the research are as follows:

• In 2006, 43.5 million 3G phones (92% of 47.8m) were sold in Japan.
• Camera, music player function, and above 2.4-inch screens with at least 240X320 resolution have become standard.
• 98 new 3G models were launched in the last 12 months in Japan

3G phone trends in more details:

• 98 3G phones were launched in Japan in fiscal year 2006.
• 68 were with 2.4 to 3.0-inch screens; 92 were with QVGA or higher resolution. The large displays are for multimedia, rich-content surfing, and multitasking on phones.
• Operators strived to generate revenue by providing large-size-attachment emailing and integrated mobile Internet-music player interfaces to push mobile data services based on camera and music functions.
• 49 phones were mobile wallet phones and 45 were GPS phones. The convenience and usefulness of mobile wallet payment and navigation services are gaining acceptance among customers and providing substantial business opportunities for operators, device makers, content providers, and others participating in the value system.
• 19 models supported One Seg mobile TV broadcasting in Japan. The limited models available are not due to the higher cost, but because of an unclear business model for operators to make significant revenue from the free-to-air TV broadcasting service.

Source: In-Stat

DoCoMo in talks with Apple to bring iPhone to Japan

When asked about iPhone at NTT DoCoMo’s shareholder meeting held on June 19, the company’s management confirmed that DoCoMo was interested in bringing iPhone to Japan and intended to have discussions with Steve Jobs about this possibility. However, DoCoMo is likely to face a competition from Softbank, third largest operator in Japan, who is rumored for a long time to carry iPhone on its network in Japan. Both operators run 3G networks based on WCDMA standard, meaning that the current 2G version of iPhone is not compatible with Japanese networks. It seems that it will take another year to have iPhone optimized for Japan’s market. The willingness with what Japanese operators are ready to embrace iPhone contradicts with their traditional approach to handset vendors when the game is played by operators’ rules. For the first time in Japan, operators may agree to bend these rules and accept Apple’s conditions such as to sell unsubsidized handset and pay a portion of service revenue to handset vendor. Judging by the size of market shares, the chances of DoCoMo to snatch iPhone are more promising than Softbank’s.

Source: ITmedia

PSP phone from Sony Ericsson coming

Sony Ericsson continues to exploit the great legacy of Sony Corporation brands to give them a second mobile life. After Walkman, Cybershot and Bravia phone models saw the light Sony Ericsson decided to re-invent Play Station Portable by giving it a cellular connectivity. As it turns out a recent filing with the patent office points to a new PSP-inspired mobile phone from Sony Ericsson. Although still in preliminary stages, the phone spots a gamer-friendly swivel screen, similar to the original PSP. The drawings show a bit clunky phone that is not very suitable for phone conversations but rather optimized for games. I believe the main use of cellular radio inside this machine will be for networked games and social networking. As a user I wouldn't consider the PSP phone as a substitution for my current phone but I'd rather see it as an additional device to play with occasionally. The key question is how many users will afford the luxury of having the second or third (after notebook with cellular modem) device with a cellular contract on their budget?
Via Unwiredview