i-mode Business Strategy

what we learned from i-mode in Europe

It has been 5 years now that i-mode has been launched in Europe with heterogeneous success.

Some of the carriers, have decided to stop i-mode (Telstra, Eplus) while some of them are still very successful (Bouygues Telecom).

Thanks to its fair and transparent ecosystem, i-mode has participated to the emergence of many small, medium and large companies over the world. The company I am running, Miyowa is one of them. Even though i-mode only represents a small amount of Miyowa 's revenues now, Miyowa still provides i-mode services in over 15 countries.

The number of i-mode handsets shipped every year will slow down. All i-mode carriers have engaged a massive migration plan to wap. The installed base of i-mode users is still in millions, but this user base will now decline slowly.

Before I send this final note on the blog - which is not relevant to continue updating - I thought it could be interesting to share in 9 points what we learned from i-mode.

1- The mobile internet ARPU of an i-mode user still remains today at least 30% higher than wap users

2- I-mode penetration has been mainly slowed-down by he lack of hype terminals (i.e.brands such as Nokia).

3- Killer apps such as "send email" and "send picture by mail" generate as much usage as SMS and MMS.

4- i-mode handsets (ready to brows, ready to send email) generate mobile internet usage of over 65% of the installed base. In comparison, less than 15% of a wap installed base is using mobile internet. Main reason for this high mobile internet usage are the same as those which have more recently made the success of Apple and are as simple as this :

5- 1st reason : ready to use handset : no configuration required

6- 2nd reason : clear data plan bundles. User knows what they pay for

7- 3rd reason : easy UI

8- 4th reason : killer app are included (take picture, send email)

9- Some carriers have closed down i-mode completely this year (i.e. Telstra in Australia) but they used their experience with i-mode to build internally a much more advanced content management and provisioning system for the WAP portal which made it easier for content providers to get material into the WAP portal.

to keep updated
read Miyowa web site
send me an email

The Social Media Wave

Part 3 - Time To Get Social And Personal

View more Microsoft Word documents from Anders Lindgren.

THE SC Blog Roll

| 25.03.11 | Weekly i-mode Business Newsletter

Top New Stories

1. DoCoMo shaken by O2 delay in Germany

2. Mobile gaming hostage to complexity

3. Enabling platforms key to i-mode innovation

4. DoCoMo emasculates handset to placify business security

5. 2GB cards for fast mobile storage on i-mode handsets

What's On

The iCF is an endorsing body for the 2nd Annual Mobile Content Australia Summit, to be held Tuesday 27th & Wednesday 28th March 2007 in Sydney, Australia. Walter Adamson will be speaking on "What Investors are Looking For and How to Present to Them" Download presentation PDF.

If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Subscribe to i-Mode Business Strategy  

1. DoCoMo shaken by O2 delay in Germany

In not good news for the i-mode Alliance O2 has deferred plans to launch i-mode in Germany

According to the Times Online it is a move "that will raise questions about the mobile group’s commitment to its flagship mobile internet service".

O2 , which launched the service in the UK and Ireland two years ago, pledged then to roll out the offering in Germany in the first half of 2006. But it now says that it is focusing on other priorities in Germany, such as a fixed-line broadband service.

O2 said the launch of i-mode in Europe’s biggest market was now “under review”, with a “possibility” that plans for a rollout there could be scrapped altogether.

In the UK and Ireland, O2 has amassed 546,000 i-mode subscribers – just 3 per cent of the total customer base in those markets.

O2 signed with DoCoMo in 2004 to use the i-mode service, and the launch of i-mode in Germany by O2 was initially hampered because KPN, DoCoMo's first Alliance partner, had exclusive rights to Germany with its E-plus brand. DoCoMo resolved the dispute when KPN agreed to let O2 use the service so long as it did not use the i-mode name.

Ironically the star performer in the German mobile market in 2006 was from KPN's E-Plus, where its much lauded branding and MVNO strategies won it 1.4 percentage points (pp) of market share. For its part O2, which was level with E-Plus at the end of 2005 on 12.9% total market share, made slower progress, but still eeked out an additional 0.6pp share over the year - worth 0.5m customers in absolute terms.

Post your opinion below

---

2. Mobile gaming hostage to complexity

In a article "Mobile gaming - what went wrong" Robert Tercek noted that there had been a baffling array of business models and billing systems over the years from the sensible to the absurd.

He also said that greed had been a factor, this time from the carriers. He pointed out that DoCoMo’s i-Mode, the most successful game service ever launched, had been marked by a low take on the carrier’s behalf (9%), while the failure of WAP was marked by an extremely high take by carriers.

It's worth noting that DoCoMo and i-mode also gave content providers a very simple billing interface, as well as the 91% of item revenue as noted above.

^^Back to top

3 Reasons why you should Join the i-mode Content Forum
Check our Aims & Objectives HERE

3. Enabling platforms key to i-mode innovation

Our buddies at Wireless Watch Japan took offence at an article on eMarketer, "What stands out in the Japanese mobile market is the fact that innovation is shifting toward business models and marketing tactics as opposed to technical features and functions ... the explosion of non-official mobile content Web sites is causing the sun to set on the i-mode business model of a dominant mobile carrier selling incremental content and services to its user base," says John du Pre Gauntt, eMarketer senior analyst.

In a considered reply WWJ noted that the carriers in Japan are not "selling incremental content;" they design and manage the platforms - and for the most part are not involved with consumer-level service offerings, except for the extremely attractive ones, like m-commerce, or the very technical ones, like certain aspects of location-based services or digital tv broadcasting, for example. WWJ also allude to the power and profits of flat-rates - contrary to popular thought that carriers give margin away through flat-rate offers.

---

4. DoCoMo emasculates handset to placify business security

DoCoMo's 3G FOMA F903iBSC business-use handset is meant to enable companies to address security issues such as information leaks and non-work-related use of corporate phones.

To do this DoCoMo's theory is to close down everything on the handset including the handset's camera, external memory, USB and infrared ports, and the Osaifu-Keitai e-wallet service. In addition, the phonebook is limited to 101 entries. Further focusing the handset on business use is the absence of a music player or preinstalled i-appli Java-based applications.

DoCoMo, at the request of the customer, can remotely reset functions such as phonebook, e-mail, scheduler, data box, call records and screen memos if the handset is lost.

Security is further enhanced by a tool that automatically locks all functions when the handset is shut. Unlocking is achieved through biometric fingerprint authorization or a password.

It sounds kind of bizarre to consider that before handsets are developed outside Japan to near the state of advancement and functionality in Japan, that those in Japan are being emasculated back to the basics to address an emerging market segment.

---

5. 2GB cards for fast mobile storage on i-mode handsets

SanDisk and the i-mode Alliance (which consists of 18 mobile network providers around the globe) announced the launch of SanDisk Mobile Premier, a new line of performance-oriented microSD(TM) memory cards aimed specifically at the mobile phone market.

The Mobile Premier cards have capacity up to 2GB and transfer speeds up to 10MB/second.

Bouygues Telecom, DoCoMo's alliance partner in France, is leading the implementation of TrustedFlash-enabled products in Europe by bundling SanDisk Mobile Premier cards with new handsets. Customers of i-mode Alliance members using TrustedFlash technology can access entertainment and other content from a variety of providers.

END
Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

---

Independent audits, analysis, project reviews and i-mode strategy business advice, seminars and round tables, conference chair and speaking, magazine articles and press comment - to discuss these and other opportunities, please call or email. | Walter | Email Walter | Call (Australia) . | Pascal | Email Pascal | Call (France) . | Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy.

This Weekly Newsletter on the i-mode business ecosystem is bought to you the i-mode Content Forum (iCF) the world's largest and most active i-mode® content trade association. President Pascal Lorne, and VP Asia-Pacific Walter Adamson.  See our Aims and Objectives.

| 07.02.11 | Weekly i-mode Business Newsletter

Top New Stories

1. DoCoMo dips profit announces new flat-data plans

2. Romania goes i-mode in 2007

3. DoCoMo buys into China corporate mobile apps

4. Mobile firms join to cut phone development costs

5. Telstra search fails to find i-mode

What's On

The iCF is an endorsing body for the 2nd Annual Mobile Content Australia Summit, to be held Tuesday 27th & Wednesday 28th March 2007 in Sydney, Australia. Walter Adamson will be speaking on "What Investors are Looking For and How to Present to Them".

If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Subscribe to i-Mode Business Strategy  

1. DoCoMo dips profit announces new flat-data plans

DoCoMo recorded a profit drop in the 9 months April to December 2006 of 22%, mainly due to the costs of moving subscribers to the FOMA 3G network. The number FOMA subscribers was 32.11m at the end of December 2006 (61.5% of all subscribers). The company aims to have two-thirds of its subscribers using its FOMA service by the end of March 2007.  DoCoMo also battled with mobile number portability during the period, with a net loss of subscribers to KDDI au.

DoCoMo may find that its giant competitor from across the sea - China Mobile - has more luck in international expansion that itself. China Mobile's market capitalization has tripled in the past two years to $184 billion, overtaking both Vodafone and DoCoMo as the world's most valuable mobile-phone operator. The company is ranked as the biggest by users, with 301.2 million subscribers in 2006. China Mobile acquired Pakistan's PakTel for US$284m, giving it access to Paktel's 1.38 million users. That compares with Hutchison Essar Ltd., India's fourth-largest operator, which is valued at about $18 billion by bidders seeking to buy a company with 22.3 million subscribers.

DoCoMo also announced two new flat-rate data plans: Pake-hodai full will enable FOMA™ i-mode™ subscribers with full-browser handsets to view not only i-mode but also PC websites and videos in Windows Media® format (compatible with P903iX HIGH-SPEED) for a flat monthly rate of 5,985 yen (about US$50). Biz-hodai will offer flat-rate packet communications for non-i-mode FOMA handsets, such as the Motorola M1000, at a monthly rate of 5,985 yen (including tax).

Post your opinion below

---

2. Romania goes i-mode in 2007

Cosmote Romania is the Romanian DoCoMo i-mode alliance partner, through its owner Cosmote of Greece. In The Diplomat Bucharest CEO Nikolaos Tsolas tells the amazing story of how Cosmote has turned around a failed mobile operating firm and added almost one million customers in only 12 months - it's interesting reading.

Tsolas says Cosmote Romania will this year launch its i-mode service, which includes high speed data transfer, mainly for corporate usage – but not video. "The truth is that not many are interested in video telephony on mobile," said Tsolas.

^^Back to top

3 Reasons why you should Join the i-mode Content Forum
Check our Aims & Objectives HERE

3. DoCoMo buys into China corporate mobile apps

An interesting announcement by DoCoMo is that the company and UFIDA Software Co., Ltd., "the leading Chinese supplier of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, will enter the corporate mobile solutions market in China through a joint investment in Fidatone Mobile Technology and Service Co., Ltd".

DoCoMo will invest US$5 million (roughly 600 million yen) to acquire an approximately 33.3% equity stake in March 2007 (UFIDA invested $8.42). That makes a $28.42m post-money valuation for this start-up!

A corporate mobile-solution subsidiary to be established by Fidatone in February will utilize DoCoMo's expertise and UFIDA's ERP software and customer base to develop and market the solutions in China.

It's interesting because corporate mobile solutions are noticable by their absence in the Japanese market - there are home-grown and in-house written applications and many business uses of the cellular system but it is hard to find a branded standalone company marketing mobile phone business applications.  It is a market overwhelmingly dominated by consumer applications. Maybe DoCoMo will learn from the Chinese market, and certainly from UFIDA which is a real software powerhouse and far from DoCoMo's strengths.

---

4. Mobile firms join to cut phone development costs

DoCoMo announced that it and Renesas Technology, Fujitsu, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Sharp Corporation, and Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications, plan to jointly develop a next-generation platform for dual-mode handsets supporting HSDPA/W-CDMA (3G) and GSM/GPRS/EDGE (2G). Development of the platform is targeted to complete during Q2 FY2008 (July-September).

By implementing the platform as a base system the manufacturers (Fujitsu, Mitsubishi Electric, Sharp, and Sony Ericsson) can eliminate the need to each develop common handset functions - significantly reducing development time and costs, allowing the manufacturers to invest more time and resources in developing distinctive handset features and expanding their product portfolio.

The platform will run Symbian. It's a good move by these manufacturers and noticable by its absence is NEC Mobile, which is faltering in its mobile handset business everywhere except Japan.  They would have been consulted and be fully informed about this move, so they must be brewing their own new strategy.

---

5. Telstra search fails to find i-mode

Telstra is DoCoMo's i-mode alliance partner for Australia but you'd be hard-pressed to find any mention of i-mode in their marketing or stores - in fact using the search bar on Tesltra.com "i-mode" or "i-mode" returns the message:

You searched all Telstra sites for the term imode: No Results found.

CEO Sol Trujillo is pushing the NextG 3.5G mobile service with Bigpond Content as the core of his mobile content business. Perhaps Hutchison will take over the i-mode license when Telstra's rights expire.

END
Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

---

Independent audits, analysis, project reviews and i-mode strategy business advice, seminars and round tables, conference chair and speaking, magazine articles and press comment - to discuss these and other opportunities, please call or email. | Walter | Email Walter | Call (Australia) . | Pascal | Email Pascal | Call (France) . | Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy.

This Weekly Newsletter on the i-mode business ecosystem is bought to you the i-mode Content Forum (iCF) the world's largest and most active i-mode® content trade association. President Pascal Lorne, and VP Asia-Pacific Walter Adamson.  See our Aims and Objectives.

Mobile Content Australia 2007 earlybird discount

Mobile Content Australia 2007 is running Tuesday 27th & Wednesday 28th March 2007 at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, Australia and is off to a great start – with key industry sectors represented.

Companies planning to attend have just 3 weeks left to register for just $995.

Book before Friday 23rd February to SAVE:

• $900 off the group booking package [register 3 and 4th attends FREE]
• $300 off the single registration price.

HEAR from 30+ speakers.

Sponsorship opportunities are available but limited.

SPEAKERS INCLUDE: * Chris Althaus, CEO, Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA) * Walter Adamson, Vice President Asia Pacific, i-mode Forum * Che Metcalfe, Managing Director, Kukan Studio * Martin Farrimond, Broadcast Australia * David Kainer, Viva La Mobile - New * Martin Hoffman, Loop Wireless Ltd * Chris Noone, nineMSN * Paul Buchanan, Soundbuzz * Angelo Frangopoulos, Sky News Australia.

REGISTER NOW! - HERE'S HOW ONLINE: www.acevents.com.au/mobilecontent2007 TEL: +61 (2) 8908 8555 FAX: Download booking form and fax back to +61 (2) 8908 8556 EMAIL: Your full contact details to mailto:shahida@acevents.com.au POST: Download booking form and post to PO Box 1645 North Sydney NSW 2059

Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy

| 07.01.28 | Weekly i-mode Business Newsletter

Top New Stories

1. Putting the iPhone in context

2. LiMo Linux for Mobile gets brand and logo

3. DoCoMo India plans stymied by Hutchison

4. Red Herring pokes into DoCoMo's future

5. FOMA D800iDS has dual screen

What's On

The iCF is an endorsing body for the 2nd Annual Mobile Content Australia Summit, to be held Tuesday 27th & Wednesday 28th March 2007 in Sydney, Australia. Walter Adamson will be speaking on "What Investors are Looking For and How to Present to Them".

If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Subscribe to i-Mode Business Strategy  

1. Putting the iPhone in context

Whether you are overwhelmed or underwhelmed by Apple's announcement of the iPhone depends in large part on where you sit in the world.

The Toronto Star contains an excellent opinion piece which places the iPhone in the context of DoCoMo and Japan's mobile phone systems - it's worth reading because it is well researched and well balanced.

The near-euphoric reaction to the iPhone, however, has missed a key part of the story.

For the past decade, commentators in the United States and Canada accepted the idea that North America remains the global innovator in consumer electronics and mobile media. The reality, however, is quite different.

Mobile phone hardware and mobile Internet services are much farther advanced in other countries. Long before the iPhone, mobile media companies in other parts of the world were providing consumers with a startling array of mobile options and services.

Japan continues to be a key innovator in this field. The leader of the mobile media revolution is a company called DoCoMo. This firm responded to the shortcomings of Japanese Internet services by setting up an exceptional mobile Internet operation. Its i-mode phone transformed DoCoMo into the world's largest mobile communications firm. The i-mode revolutionized the mobile Internet in Japan, offering email, web-browsing and e-wallets. Five years ago, DoCoMo launched a 3G service in Japan that enabled easy usage of audio and video files.

Post your opinion below

---

2. LiMo Linux for Mobile gets brand and logo

Motorola, NEC, DoCoMo, Panasonic Mobile Communications, Samsung Electronics, and Vodafone announced today the official launch of the LiMo Foundation - "to support their goal of creating the world's first globally competitive, Linux-based software platform for mobile devices". The group was formed six months ago.

"DoCoMo believes continuously improving performance and reducing handset costs are vital goals for operators," Kiyohito Nagata said in June last year when the consortium was announced. Two of the foundation members, NEC and Panasonic, have been working together on Linux-based phones for DoCoMo since 2001.

LiMo has three classes of members - Foundation, Core and Associate - open to any individual or enterprise for an annual fee of between $40,000 and $800,000 depending on membership class.

LiMo is a powerful kick to Linux on mobile but it faces open source fragmentation as it perhaps competes with or at least splits attention with the Linux Phone Standards (LiPS) Forum, whose backers include manufacturers Texas Instruments, ZTE and Freescale, operators France Telecom (the owners of Orange), Telecom Italia and software vendors Trolltech, Palmsource Inc and McAfee.

^^Back to top

3 Reasons why you should Join the i-mode Content Forum
Check our Aims & Objectives HERE

3. DoCoMo India plans stymied by Hutchison

No sooner has DoCoMo celebrated its potential entry into the Indian market, through its tie-up with Hutchison 3G, Hutchison has hatched a plan to exit the INdian market at a substantial profit. DoCoMo's long held dream of entering India (and China) has been shattered as a consequence of its poor international partnering strategy which is proving tenuous at best with their partners in Israel, Australia, Russia and probably Holland all quietly losing interest and sinking i-mode in their local markets.

When the Indian tie-up was announced Takeshi Natsuno, DoCoMo Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Multimedia Services, said: "I am delighted that i-mode will be introduced in India, giving DoCoMo a foothold in this dynamic emerging market".

Kiss that goodbye as Canning Fok, managing director of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa - the holding company for Hutchison Telecom International Ltd (HTIL) - is poised to sell off their stake in India's Hutchison Essar for a potential US$17 billion (just as other particuarly Western companies e.g. Vodafone say it's time to expand operations in the country).

---

4. Red Herring pokes into DoCoMo's future

Red Herring's February issue has a piece called "Trouble at the Summit" which "looks at Tokyo's mobile king, NTT DoCoMo, which is moving into credit cards and other areas as the company looks to counter slipping market share, slowing subscriber growth, and a stagnant stock price".

The people at Red Herring have superb contacts and know what is going on in IT and wireless and that issue would be worth a good read. The main feature is about Hutchison 3G and its newest marketing strategy (also tied up now with DoCoMo, see item above).

---

5. FOMA D800iDS has dual screen

As so often, leading the world in handset innovation, DoCoMo announced new 3G FOMA™ handsets including the D800iDS, which has two screens:

• a conventional screen; and,
• a touch-screen instead of a keypad, making it easy to input letters.

This Symbian handset is discussed on All About Symbian and there are screenshots.

Other handsets announced included the 703i Series and the SO903iTV. The 703i Series consists of eight models: N703iμ (iμ is pronounced i-mew), P703iμ, D703i, F703i, N703iD, P703i, SH703i, and SO703i. Most of the models are extra slim, with the N703iμ and P703iμ being the thinnest W-CDMA clamshell handsets in the world as of January 15, 2007.

The (Sony Ericsson) SO903iTV handset is equipped with a high-resolution LCD using BRAVIA® technology and high-quality audio for viewing "One-segment" terrestrial digital broadcasts.

The other 703i Series models and D800iDS are planned to be sold in February, while SO903iTV is scheduled to be launched in June 2007.

END
Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

---

Independent audits, analysis, project reviews and i-mode strategy business advice, seminars and round tables, conference chair and speaking, magazine articles and press comment - to discuss these and other opportunities, please call or email. | Walter | Email Walter | Call (Australia) . | Pascal | Email Pascal | Call (France) . | Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy.

This Weekly Newsletter on the i-mode business ecosystem is bought to you the i-mode Content Forum (iCF) the world's largest and most active i-mode® content trade association. President Pascal Lorne, and VP Asia-Pacific Walter Adamson.  See our Aims and Objectives.

| 06.12.17 | Weekly i-mode Business Newsletter

Top New Stories

1. Natsuno dreams of not being a telco

2. IM drives demand for other mobile data services

3. i-mode in Bulgaria gets new handset

4. Napster brings music to ears of i-mode in Ireland

5. WIND launches Mobile Discovery

What's On

The iCF is a Media Partner for the 3rd Annual Mobile Gambling Summit Europe 2007, January 22-23. Read more, and register here.

BEST WISHES to all our readers and subscribers for Xmas and New Year as this will be the last Newsletter for 2006, we'll be resuming our posts on January 14, 2007.

If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Subscribe to i-Mode Business Strategy  

1. Natsuno dreams of not being a telco

The argument between mobile handset convergenists and divergenists is voiced in Business Week Asia where DoCoMo's Takeshi Natsuno, one of the founders of i-mode, says that he is on a mission to create the ultimate, all-purpose, mobile device.

"My dream is to travel abroad with only my phone—no PC, no wallet, no plastic credit cards," he says.

In the long term, says Business Week, Natsuno's grand ideas could help DoCoMo make the transition from a telco to a "lifestyle service provider."

"If we succeed, DoCoMo won't be a telecom company anymore," he says.

Business Week says that packing every possible whiz-bang feature into an ultra-thin, portable, electronic device seems to be the standard business model for cell phone makers "and yet it's hardly the ideal all-in-one gizmo, and some say it never will be".

"There's no single killer application. Some will want games, others music," says Natsuno. "That's why you have to offer as much as possible."

Others differ with Natsuno. Pieter Knook, Microsoft's (MSFT) senior vice-president in charge of mobile and embedded devices. "The single device that does it all will always have a compromise in its capabilities," he says. Researchers at Hewlett-Packard would agree, says the article. "They envision a future in which we rely on a handful of devices that each do one thing well, not an all-in-one solution".

Who's right? Well the only one with a track record in mobile is Natsuno, but they may well all be right in the future.

Post your opinion below

---

2. IM drives demand for other mobile data services

Is IM a telco's worst enemy, or best friend? In Europe i-mode Content Forum Founder Pascal Lorne has transformed his company Miyowa into the European leader in mobile Instant Messaging , and has attracted investment, and had early support from the Microsoft Emerging Business Team.

ZDNet Asia reported that in September this year, Singapore DoCoMo alliance partner StarHub partnered with Microsoft to offer the Windows Live Messenger service for i-mode subscribers. For a flat fee of S$5.25 (US$3.40) per month, users can send IM messages using their existing Windows Live Messenger accounts with their handsets.

Goh Li Li, StarHub's assistant vice president of mobile services, declined to reveal subscriber numbers for its i-mode IM service, citing competitive reasons.

"We can say that customer response to our Windows Live Messenger service on i-mode has been within our expectations," she said, noting that StarHub is looking to offer similar services to non-i-mode users, as part of plans to drive consumer demand for mobile data services.

Neither does StarHub see IM as a competitive threat to SMS revenues, says ZDNet.

According to Goh, the company treats IM as part of the overall mobile data market, which includes other applications and content like SMS/MMS (multimedia messaging service), e-mail, Internet access, news, music and TV. "Now that SMS and mobile e-mail have gained wider acceptance, we believe [IM] will help drive the demand for other mobile data services," she said.

Clearly the leading and progressive operators can see IM as a key to future success with the youth market, not a threat.

^^Back to top

3 Reasons why you should Join the i-mode Content Forum
Check our Aims & Objectives HERE

3. i-mode in Bulgaria gets new handset

Lack of handset choice has plagued international i-mode launches and its good news that Bulgarian i-mode partner Globul has launched the new LG L343i i-mode tri-band handset, with dual colour screens, camera, polyphonic ringtones and Bluetooth connectivity.

---

4. Napster brings music to ears of i-mode in Ireland

Following its launch in Japan with DoCoMo, Napster and O2 Ireland launched Napster Mobile on 3G i-mode.

O2 Ireland became the first mobile operator in Europe to offer Napster via phones. Interestingly Ericsson will host and manage the operation of the service for O2 Ireland under a managed services agreement.

"The Napster brand is instantly recognisable as one of the world’s biggest music brands with 2.2 million tracks available immediately for our i-mode customers," said Gerry McQuaid, commercial director, O2 Ireland.

---

5. WIND launches Mobile Discovery

Italian i-mode alliance partner WIND launched "Mobile Discovery" a new i-mode service for the Discovery Channel.

WIND's intentions for i-mode have been hard to find from the outside, although in recent months has been active in promoting the i-mode option, and in adding new content.

The Mobile Discovery service is located in the category “Loghi and Immagini”,with a cost of €2 per month.

END
Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

---

Independent audits, analysis, project reviews and i-mode strategy business advice, seminars and round tables, conference chair and speaking, magazine articles and press comment - to discuss these and other opportunities, please call or email. | Walter | Email Walter | Call (Australia) . | Pascal | Email Pascal | Call (France) . | Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy.

This Weekly Newsletter on the i-mode business ecosystem is bought to you the i-mode Content Forum (iCF) the world's largest and most active i-mode® content trade association. President Pascal Lorne, and VP Asia-Pacific Walter Adamson.  See our Aims and Objectives.

| 06.12.10 | Weekly i-mode Business Newsletter

Top New Stories

1. DoCoMo hits the wall - subscribers fall after portability

2. Bouygues Telecom improves revenue and profit

3. DoCoMo faces off subscriber losses and focuses on Japan

4. DoCoMo pan-Asian alliance brands itself

5. Handset costs hinder i-mode rollout

What's On

The iCF is a Media Partner for the 3rd Annual Mobile Gambling Summit Europe 2007, January 22-23. Read more, and register here.

If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Subscribe to i-Mode Business Strategy

1. DoCoMo hits the wall - subscribers fall after portability

DoCoMo Chief Executive Nakamura started the year mildly bullish in the buildup to number portabiity in Japan, expressing confidence that DoCoMo would retain its subscribers and even attract some from the other carriers, particularly Vodafone or Softbank Mobile as it became.

As the year progressed he became neutral and joined all the analysts who predicted "no great change" in subscriber distribution. We reported in September how the outlook was as clear as mud. However, quietly DoCoMo hedged its bets with a spokesman quietly slipping out during this period that they at least hoped to retain their share of corporate customers.

Well the reality was far worse than expected, and perhaps we at i-mode Business Strategy can gloat and say that when the analysts were neutral we predicted:

Let's be more bold and state that KDDI and Softbank Mobile are the front-runners to gain, and DoCoMo the most likely to lose subscribers - in terms of percentage of total market.

Most reports on the November numbers don't really get the message, with reports having nothing in particular to say although some reported that DoCoMo had lost about 1 million 2G subscribers without saying that they had switched to their 3G service.

KDDI gained 479,600 in November on a net basis (taking it to 25.319 million users at the end of November). DoCoMo lost 17,500 subscribers (and said that it had about 52.126 million users at the end of November). The number of subscribers to DoCoMo's 3G FOMA service rose by a net 928,900 to 30.839 million, while the number of its 2G MOVA service users fell by a net 946,300 to 21.287 million.

Our buddies at Wireless Watch Japan picked up the hot potato and shouted that:

"this might well be the first time that market leader NTT DoCoMo has ever announced a net client loss: -17,500. Perhaps even more shocking was the fact that their prized i-mode service also shed 56,200 subscribers!"

Shocking indeed and serious enough to give Mr Nakamura a severe headache.

Post your opinion below

---

2. Bouygues Telecom improves revenue and profit

DoCoMo i-mode alliance partner Bouygues Telecom reported slightly falling EBITDA margin - down by 2.5 percentage points to 30.9% in the first nine months of the year - due to marketing costs of aggressive customer acquistion, although its parent Bouygues Group was on a massive upswing in revenue and profitability - unveiling a 36% lift in 3rd qtr profit.

Some analysts said that the nine-month result put Bouygues Telecoms ahead of forecasts in both revenue and profits, although the Bouygues Group did not break out the segments.

Rumours persist that Bouygues will sell its telecoms unit, although Deputy Chief Executive Olivier Poupart-Lafarge told a conference call with analysts "We are not considering selling Bouygues Telecom". If it did in any case Bouygues will achieve a heady price and profit for the parent as Bouygues Telecom is certainly on a growth trajectory and one of the besxt run operations in Europe and the most successful i-mode alliance partner.

^^Back to top

3 Reasons why you should Join the i-mode Content Forum
Check our Aims & Objectives HERE

3. DoCoMo faces off subscriber losses and focuses on Japan

How is DoCoMo handling their first-ever net client loss, following the second month of number portability in Japan?

Bravely!

"We aim for an upward trend," DoCoMo's Executive Senior Vice President Masayuki Hirata said in an interview with Reuters "on the sidelines of the ITU Telecom World 2006 forum in Hong Kong".

"At the moment, there's no discussion for a serious price cut," he said. "We expect gains from new sources of revenue we're trying to expand into as we see limited contributions from subscriber growth in a mature market."

Hirata-san also said something else very interesting in the interview - "We're not like the other global carriers who looks abroad for subscriber growth," Hirata said. "We're focused on Japan."

Really! Small comfort for its i-mode alliance partners, and for the value of its many recent minority investments - makes one ask "why bother?".

---

4. DoCoMo pan-Asian alliance brands itself

The pan-Asian operator alliance, created in April 2006, has announced its new brandname CONEXUS Mobile Alliance as well as welcoming the Philippines' mobile operator, Smart Communications into the group.

With SMART's participation, the alliance has expanded its coverage footprint to over 130 million mobile subscribers in nine countries and regions. The alliance's other members are Far EasTone Telecommunications (Taiwan), Hutchison Essar (India), Hutchison Telecommunications (Hong Kong and Macau), Indosat (Indonesia), KT Freetel (South Korea), DoCoMo (Japan) and StarHub (Singapore).

DoCoMo is of course the driver, and this alliance aims to combate Singtel's Bridge Mobile alliance, in offering conventional roaming via GSM/GPRS and/or W-CDMA networks, and also CONEXUS has started working on roaming with HSDPA technology (including for i-mode). CONEXUS is the bigger of the two alliances by subscribers, touhcing 130 million. (Unfortunately a Google Search for "conexus mobile alliance" does not yield a website!)

---

5. Handset costs hinder i-mode rollout

The global roll-out of i-mode has been plagued by something perhaps least expected - a lack of competitive handsets in each new market.

This plagued KPN as the original i-mode alliance partner, led to MTS in Russia cancelling its alliance, is holding back O2's subscriptions, and in Australia Telstra only ever released one 3G i-mode handset before walking away from the whole arrangement. That one was (is) the NEC600i and while a nice piece of engineering it was a handset that you'd buy your uncle for Xmas - it was never going to sell to the target market.

Right now Smart Communication in the Philipines is facing the same issue - and they've told DoCoMo that this one issue is critical.

"Until such time 3G handset cost falls to $100 each, it would be difficult to push the rollout of 3G in our country," said Smart Communications' wholesale business group head Roger Quevedo.

"We are still waiting for Nokia Corp.'s handset using imode," said Quevedo.

DoCoMo is acutely aware and is squeezing handset makers. Executive Senior Vice President Masayuki Hirata said (in the interview with Reuters quoted above) DoCoMo was squeezing base handset costs with new chips and software platforms while trying to figure out which advanced technologies to add to match consumer demand.

"We will be paying more attention how we order handsets from our suppliers," Hirata said.

END
Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

---

Independent audits, analysis, project reviews and i-mode strategy business advice, seminars and round tables, conference chair and speaking, magazine articles and press comment - to discuss these and other opportunities, please call or email. | Walter | Email Walter | Call (Australia) +61 403 345 632. | Pascal | Email Pascal | Call (France) +33 670 765 643. | Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy.

This Weekly Newsletter on the i-mode business ecosystem is bought to you the i-mode Content Forum (iCF) the world's largest and most active i-mode® content trade association. President Pascal Lorne, and VP Asia-Pacific Walter Adamson.  See our Aims and Objectives.

| 06.12.03 | Weekly i-mode Business Newsletter

Top New Stories

1. IrSimple makes mobile printing easy

2. DoCoMo positions for media production role

3. WIND becomes wholly-owned by Orascom

4. Ubiquitous GPS on mobile creates opportunities

5. DoCoMo shapes powerful mobile broadcast TV alliance

What's On

The iCF is a Media Partner for the 3rd Annual Mobile Gambling Summit Europe 2007, January 22-23. Read more, and register here.

For Australia - on the event list is Mobile Monday Melbourne - networking for the mobile content industry - when: 6.30pm to 8.30pm December 4th 2006 - where: Horse Bazaar, Digital Art Gallery Bar, 397 Little Lonsdale Street, Melbourne - cost: free. Guest speaker @ 7pm: Cathy Edwards, who leads the Customer Experience group within Telstra's Chief Technology Office. Cathy will talk about the recent launch of Telstra's Next G network, and "how this can be seen as a tipping point for the growth of mobile data services".

If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Subscribe to i-Mode Business Strategy  

1. IrSimple makes mobile printing easy

I thought that the announcement by the Mobile Imaging and Printing Consortium (MIPC) that they would adopt IrSimple^TM as the technology protocol of choice for Infrared communication was an overlooked but important story. The MIPC is an industry group developing solutions and implementation guidelines for printing images captured with mobile phones.

This is not just because it was developed by DoCoMo, Sharp Corporation, ITX E-Globaledge Corporation, and Waseda University - some of the most advanced thinking organisations in the mobile technology world - but because mobile imaging and printing issues and educating consumers about capabilities of mobile imaging devices and how to use Bluetooth, Infrared, Wi-Fi, Memory Cards and USB (PictBridge) for home and kiosk printers opens up new markets.  And a key requirement is for speed. In this sense IrSimple is very important.

In October, 2006, MIPC also launched its website geared toward consumers. The website contains consumer-oriented information as well as developers' membership information.

-- IrSimple was accepted last year by IrDA (Infrared Data Association) as a global standard and provides faster data transmission speeds (at least 4 to 10 times faster than at present).

Post your opinion below

---

2. DoCoMo positions for media production role

DoCoMo moved to buy 3.78% in Kadokawa Group Holdings - a company engaged mainly in publishing or movies/visual content.  Kadokawa moved to the Tokyo main board in Septemebr 2004 and has under its control more than 40 affiliated companies such as publishing companies, movie/visual business companies, cross media business companies and business support companies inside and outside Japan.

Its an interesting move, although done in that typical Japanese style of a meaningless capital investment when in the West it would simply be a commerical alliance.  The upside on 3.78% of Kadokawa would be immaterial to DoCoMo, while the distraction of owning the shares is more material.

Under the agreement, DoCoMo will also tie up with the group companies Kadokawa Shoten Publishing, Kadokawa Herald Pictures, Kadokawa Mobile, Herald Enterprise, and Kadokawa Media House Inc. The Group is the publisher of the popular Tokyo Walker magazine (see below right). The Group's magazines have tremendous reach, with an aggregate monthly circulation of 18 million copies.

The alliance will combine Kadokawa's strengths as a major provider of printed and visual content with DoCoMo's huge subscriber base and i-mode™ mobile Internet service.

The parties will focus on the use of visual content over mobile networks, and will develop mobile content related with Kadokawa movies and animation, including original video content developed initially for the mobile environment, prior to release via other media.

Customers will be able to use the iD™ mobile credit service, which can be used on Osaifu-Keitai™ e-wallet phones, for payments at 11 Cineplex theaters (92 screens) of Herald Enterprise by the end of June 2007. In addition, DoCoMo's ToruCa™ information-capture service is planned to be introduced at the theaters. Also, Kadokawa will increase the range of content it distributes through some 40 sites it has on the i-mode portal.

The move by DoCoMo is more strategic than it seems, because it is a move towards funding and partnering in content production, and particularly video content product for mobiles.

^^Back to top

3 Reasons why you should Join the i-mode Content Forum
Check our Aims & Objectives HERE

3. WIND becomes wholly-owned by Orascom

Italy's WIND remains an i-mode alliance partner, even though news and press about WIND and i-mode has been hard to come by.  The good news is that, unlike Telstra and Cellcom (Israel) where i-mode has simply disappeared from the agenda without formal announcements of its demise, WIND still promotes i-mode on its sites and in its corporate description.

According to press reports from Italy, Egyptian investor Naguib Sawiris is likley to gain full control of WIND.

Sawiris is reportedly looking at merging Wind with his Orascom Telecom group ahead of an IPO next year.

The Italian utility group Enel is ready to offload its 26.5% stake says business newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore.

---

4. Ubiquitous GPS on mobile creates opportunities

Wireless analyst firm Berg Insight forecasts that 60% of WCDMA handset shipped worldwide will have integrated GPS / Galileo receivers by 2010.

In Japan, DoCoMo and other carriers will introduce GPS on all handsets from 2007, to comply with regulation similar to that in the US - accurate positioning of mobile emergency calls. Of course the social networking and GENERATION C implications of all handsets being GPS-enabled within the powerful mobile social communities in Japan are enormous, opening up whole new commercial opportunities around auto-geo-tagging.

---

5. DoCoMo shapes powerful mobile broadcast TV alliance

As another part of its mobile broadcasting strategy DoCoMo has announced it is teaming up with Fuji Television Network, Nippon Broadcasting System and others to develop TV shows for mobile phones, and it is understood the joint venture alliance will also include satellite broadcaster Sky Perfect Communications and trading house Itochu Corp, "although the size and scope of each company's investment and stake has yet to be decided".

The new company will plan, further develop and promote so-called "one segment" terrestrial digital broadcasting services. The service, which started on April 1, allows users to watch TV programs on mobile phones. The company also aims to acquire bandwidth using this method in the future. DoCoMo has already acquired about a 3% stake in Fuji Television as part of its overall mobile TV strategy.

As Jason Ankeny says at FierceMobileContent, "...by creating television shows specifically targeted for the small screens and short attention spans of mobile viewing, DoCoMo can focus on developing new properties and franchises instead of rehashing old titles and disappointing loyal fanbases in the process".

END
Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

---

Independent audits, analysis, project reviews and i-mode strategy business advice, seminars and round tables, conference chair and speaking, magazine articles and press comment - to discuss these and other opportunities, please call or email. | Walter | Email Walter | Call (Australia) +61 403 345 632. | Pascal | Email Pascal | Call (France) +33 670 765 643. | Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy.

This Weekly Newsletter on the i-mode business ecosystem is bought to you the i-mode Content Forum (iCF) the world's largest and most active i-mode® content trade association. President Pascal Lorne, and VP Asia-Pacific Walter Adamson.  See our Aims and Objectives.

Mobilists Carnival on Fierce

Eli Dickinson of FierceDeveloper hosted the Carnival of the Mobilists this week.

The selection of blogs is worth reading, and Eli's done the hard work in sorting through the suggestions which came in, and as Barry Welford commented:

Great job, Eli. It's always more interesting when the editor has clearly studied the entries and carefully considered how to present the key items.

Eli choose i-mode Business Strategy to be among the final set, with reference to our posts on DoCoMo's and Intel's OSTO standard:

OSTI is a pretty cool standard that I haven't heard much about, said Eli.

You'll find the posts here:

• DoCoMo Intel dual OS phone initiative for business - Lesson One
• OSTI and DoCoMo's mobile OS investments

That first is "Lesson One" because it is kind of hard to get to grips with the OSTI objectives in one sitting.  And it also has a long and generally unknown history reflecting a previous attempt by DoCoMo and Intel to bring forward a very presciptive standard - which failed.  This is a "back up and try again effort" which may work. I'll cover all these aspects in future "lessons".

If you have some insights yourself about OSTI and its objectives and potential application please let me know, I'm still learning myself!

- If you're interested in mobile search news, see the latest at Goobile.com

---

Interested in the Mobile Gambling Industry? Save $600. The i-mode Content Forum (iCF) are media partners for the 3rd annual Mobile Gambling Summit taking place on 22-23rd January 2007 in London. Take a look at who has already joined the agenda and check the brochure. The iCF has managed to secure an exclusive discount for you but you must register quickly. The early bird discount of £200 is set to expire this Friday 1st December. If you register before this cut off date you will receive an additional £100 off by just quoting "I Mode" in the online discount box. That's a £300 saving - nearly US$600 saving!!. Go to the secure registration and quote "I Mode" in the discount code box provided.

Is there an i-mode project or news that you think we should feature? Email tips@imodestrategy.com. Thanks!

Subscribe to i-Mode Strategy