Some 17.1% of Japan’s mobile users may swap networks – study
Nearly one quarter of Japanese operator Vodafone KK’s subscribers are considering switching to another mobile phone provider after number portability comes into force on 24 October, according to a survey by Nikkei Industrial Daily. Including Japanese mobile networks combined, the latest survey indicates that 17.1 percent of respondents plan to change providers, or 6.1 percentage points less than in a June survey. Some 24.7 percent of Vodafone subscribers said they were considering a change, followed by 18.7 percent of NTT DoCoMo subscribers and 8.1 percent of KDDI au service customers. When those considering a change were asked what was their preferred company, 61.1 percent said KDDI, followed by Vodafone with 17.6 percent and DoCoMo with 13.5 percent.
Source-http://www.telecompaper.com
Technorati : Japan, Mobile, NTT Do Co Mo, Vodafone
Ice Rocket : Japan, Mobile, NTT Do Co Mo, Vodafone
Toyota to sell driver-friendly KDDI mobile phones
TOKYO (Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp. said on Wednesday it has developed a mobile phone with KDDI Corp. that will make it easier for drivers in Japan to use its car navigation and other services.
The phone, called “TiMO”, will go on sale at the end of October and will be sold only at the automaker’s 7,500 outlets in Japan, the companies said in a statement.
Toyota has been working closely with KDDI, in which the auto maker has an 11 percent stake, to develop new services that link cars and telecom networks.
The new handset will be compatible with Toyota’s car navigation system using Bluetooth, a wireless technology.
The companies have also developed a phone battery charger that can be attached to the driver’s armrest and will offer downloads of music and games free to TiMO users.
Drivers will also be able to connect to emergency centres by just pushing a button on the handset if they need help while on the road.
KDDI, Japan’s No.2 wireless carrier after NTT DoCoMo Inc., is keen to introduce new services before October 24, when mobile phone users will be able to keep their phone numbers when they change operators.
KDDI was formed in 2000 after a merger of three operators including a mobile phone unit backed by Toyota. Toyota is now KDDI’s second-biggest shareholder after Kyocera Corp.. The new model is based on an existing KDDI phone made by Toshiba Corp..
Source- http://today.reuters.co.uk
Technorati : Japan, KDDI Corp. Mobile, NTT Do CoMc
Ice Rocket : Japan, KDDI Corp. Mobile, NTT Do CoMc
Cingular Unveils HSDPA Handset from Samsung
Samsung Telecommunications America took the wraps off of its first high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) handset in the United States. Cingular Wireless has signed on as the exclusive U.S. provider of the SGH-zx20.
The HDSPA handset supports video streaming, high-speed Web browsing and software downloads over Cingular’s 3G HSDPA network. The handset, according to the companies, supports a variety of messaging and multimedia capabilities, including the Cingular Video service. The device supports the ability to talk while downloading multimedia applications.
Cingular is offering the quad-band handset for $99.99, after a $50 mail-in rebate and a signed 2-year service agreement.
Cingular says it is on target to launch its 3G coverage in most major U.S. markets before the end of the year. The Broadband Connect service debuted in 2005 and is now available in more than 60 cities and towns.
In Japan, NTT DoCoMo recently unveiled its first HSDPA handset, the 3G Foma N902iX High-Speed. The handset will be available beginning Aug. 31 when DoCoMo and its eight subsidiaries launch an HSDPA service.
Source- http://www.wirelessweek.com
Technorati : Cingular, Mobile, Samsung
Ice Rocket : Cingular, Mobile, Samsung
Motorola to develop mobile WiMax chipsets
MANHASSET, N.Y. – Motorola Inc. has announced a strategic initiative to develop mobile WiMax chipsets for the company’s next-generation WiMax devices.Motorola’s initial chipset will focus on core 802.16e mobile WiMax functionality supporting voice, video, and data for low power mobile applications in handsets and modules. These first chipsets are scheduled to support commercial Motorola WiMax devices in 2008 for carriers in North America, Japan and around the world including Sprint and others.
Motorola is working with its silicon vendors on the overall fabrication of the chipsets.
Source- http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=192400121
Technorati : Japan, Mobile, Motorola, Sprint, USA
Ice Rocket : Japan, Mobile, Motorola, Sprint, USA
SK Telecom to Help China Develop 3G Mobile Service
Aug. 29 (Bloomberg) — SK Telecom Co., South Korea’s largest mobile-phone operator, will help China develop its own standard for wireless networks, seeking access to the world’s biggest cell-phone market by subscribers.
The alliance is the first China’s government has signed with an overseas operator for the third-generation technology known as TD-SCDMA, which allows faster downloads of movies and music, the Seoul-based company said in a statement. SK Telecom bought $1 billion of bonds convertible into shares of China’s second- largest mobile-phone company in July.
China’s homegrown standard needs to win customers to compete with rival technologies developed by Nokia Oyj and Qualcomm Inc. SK Telecom, the world’s first provider of 3G services, joins Spain’s Telefonica SA and Hong Kong’s PCCW Ltd. in trying to access a market with more cell-phone users than the combined populations of the U.S. and Japan.
China “can benefit from the experience of a foreign operator,” said Kelvin Ho, a telecom analyst at Nomura International (Hong Kong) Ltd. The agreement may “help faster development of the TD-SCDMA standard in China.”
SK Telecom said last month when it bought bonds convertible into a 6.7 percent stake in China Unicom Ltd. that the two companies would cooperate in the development of handset and network technology and new services.
Shares of SK Telecom rose 1.1 percent to close at 189,500 won in Seoul. The stock has fallen 6.9 percent since the company announced the convertible bond purchase, compared with a 9.7 percent rise by the Kospi stock index in that period.
`Government Support’
As part of the agreement announced today, SK Telecom will test TD-SCDMA in South Korea by the second half of next year, the statement said. China plans to start the 3G service before the start of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, according to the statement.
SK Telecom expects its China business, into which SK Telecom has committed a great deal, to gain much momentum with the support of the Chinese government,” the company said.
China’s TD-SCDMA, or time division-synchronous code division multiple access, technology competes with wideband-CDMA, developed by companies including Nokia and Ericsson AB, and Qualcomm’s CDMA2000 as 3G standards.
In October 2000, SK Telecom became the world’s first company to start 3G mobile-phone services. A year later, NTT DoCoMo Inc. was the first operator to offer W-CDMA, the most common standard for the high-speed service.
Issue License
China’s government may issue its first 3G license within six months, China Netcom Group Corp. (Hong Kong) Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Zuo Xunsheng said in an interview in Hong Kong last week.
The Chinese regulator in February asked the parent companies of fixed-line operators China Netcom and China Telecom Corp. and China Mobile Ltd., the world’s largest cell-phone operator by users, to conduct trials of the TD-SCDMA standard.
Companies may spend 80 billion yuan ($10 billion) on 3G networks in China in the first year licenses are issued, according to estimates by Beijing-based researcher BDA China Ltd.
China added 38.4 million mobile-phone users in the first seven months of this year for a total of 431.8 million, according to government data.
Source-http://www.bloomberg.com
Technorati : China, Mobile, SK Telecom
Ice Rocket : China, Mobile, SK Telecom
Nokia carries Symbian
Smartphone OS provider Symbian says 12.3m units running its software shipped in the second quarter of the year, up from 7.8m a year ago. This bagged the company $37.9m in royalty revenues, the bulk of its $41.2m gross revenue.
Despite delays to several of the most anticipated models from Nokia and Sony Ericsson, 24m units shipped in the first half of the year, up 65 per cent from a year ago.
Royalties account for most of Symbian’s revenue – partnering and consultancy revenues fell sequentially. Symbian is privately held and the company doesn’t disclose its profits.
Earlier this year, Symbian’s CFO said the company was comfortably in profit, and that $80m annual revenue represents break even. So by our calculations, the company is on course to clear more than $40m in profit this year.
Overall, 55 models are in development, down one from the start of the year. Ninety-two per cent of 3G smartphones are Symbian devices, the company adds.
Symbian has Nokia and the Japanese manufacturers to thank for its growth. Four manufacturers including Sony Ericsson produce FOMA devices for the Japanese market, the rest are all from Nokia. Symbian included Sony Ericsson’s M600i [Reg Hardware Review], and Nokia’s E60 and E70 as devices that shipped in Q2, although you’ll have been very fortunate to find any of these before 30 June.
It’s the last quarterly statement before Symbian’s new, lower royalty option becomes available. So far manufacturers have paid $7.25 per unit for the first two million units shipped, and $5 per unit after that. The new royalty schedule permits phone makers to take Symbian OS for $2.50 – without Java – or two per cent of the trade price (Nokia’s average selling price per phone is a shade over $100).
Symbian’s average royalty per unit rose again in the quarter to $5.7 per unit, up from $5.3 a year ago. ®
Source- http://www.theregister.co.uk
Mobile phone sales up 18.3 percent in Q2 – study
There were 229 million mobile phones sold to end-users worldwide in the second quarter, up 18.3 percent compared to the year-earlier period. Sales in the first quarter had risen by 23.8 percent year-on-year. Gartner said the slowdown was expected. The company still expects 960 million units to be sold in 2006, including 238 million units in the third quarter. Nokia sold 77.07 million units in the second quarter, increasing its market share to 33.6 percent from 31.6 percent in the year-earlier period. Motorola added 4.2 percentage points, with the sale of 50.17 million units. Samsung sold 25.53 million units for an 11.1 percent market share, down from 12.9 percent a year earlier. Sony Ericsson sold 15.28 million units (6.7%), LG sold 14.4 million (6.3%) and BenQ Mobile sold 3.2 million (3.2 percent). By geography, Western European unit sales rose by 9 percent to 41.1 million, compared to the first quarter of 2005, Eastern European and MEA sales were up 20 percent to 42.5 million, North American sales dropped by 3.5 percent to 38.6 million, Latin American sales rose by 7 percent to 28.2 million, Asia Pacific (excluding Japan) sales were up 5.4 percent to 67.9 million and Japanese sales rose by 9 percent to 11 million units.
Source- http://www.telecompaper.com
Technorati : BenQ, Ericsson, Japan, Latin America, Mobile, Motorola, Sony
Ice Rocket : BenQ, Ericsson, Japan, Latin America, Mobile, Motorola, Sony
Ozura Mobile Chosen as Excite Japan’s First International Distribution Partner
Ozura Mobile, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nextnation Communication and a leading international publisher and developer of mobile entertainment, today announced that it has been chosen as Excite Japan’s first international mobile game distribution partner.
Singapore (PRWEB) August 23, 2006 — Ozura Mobile, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nextnation Communication and a leading international publisher and developer of mobile entertainment, today announced that it has been chosen as Excite Japan’s first international mobile game distribution partner.
Excite Japan, one of Japan’s largest web portals and mobile game providers, is granting Ozura Mobile the distribution rights for its premium mobile game titles. Ozura Mobile plans to make these games available through its extensive network of distribution channels consisting of major mobile operators and distribution partners in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, China, India and the United Kingdom.
“Ozura Mobile has been chosen as the preferred international mobile game distributor due to its well established presence in the global mobile gaming industry,” said Ozura Mobile’s Chief Executive Officer, Lion Peh.
Peh added that Ozura Mobile will be effectively offering more than 150 million mobile subscribers in its network the chance to play some of the most sought after mobile games today.
“This partnership with Excite Japan clearly reflects growing international recognition of Ozura Mobile’s cutting edge technology in the development of mobile gaming platforms. Our mobile gaming platform, FunlogiXâ„¢, is one of the most sought after platforms in the mobile gaming industry as it is highly compatible with games from all over the world ranging from Japanese to Russian origin developed using different development tools,” commented Peh.
He further revealed that over the next 3 years, Ozura Mobile expects a boost in revenue of up to USD20 million from global sales via this partnership.
Informa forecasts mobile gaming sales will generate USD$7.2bn a year worldwide by 2011, growing from the USD$2.4bn sold in 2006. The international provider of specialist information also predicts that Asia Pacific, which dominates mobile games sales, will account for nearly half the industry by 2011.
“The rapid revolution in the mobile gaming market, especially in the Asia Pacific, represents a huge potential for us. We have recently launched Indonesia’s first mobile gaming community with Indosat and we are soon to roll out more of our deployment programs in Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, China and Hong Kong. This will be another win for us in tapping into the substantial global gaming market,” said Peh.
To date, Ozura Mobile has published and aggregated an extensive compendium of games through its distribution network worldwide, representing over 2,000 game titles in over 130 countries. With its propriety gaming platform, FunlogiXâ„¢, Ozura Mobile also provides its state- of- the- art community based mobile gaming technology to mobile operators worldwide.
About Excite Japan Co. Ltd
Excite Japan Co., Ltd is one of the leading Japan-based Internet service provider. The Company has five business segments. The Advertising segment is engaged in the sale of advertising space on its Website to enterprises. The Content Service segment offers community services, music download services, online games and others. The Broadband Service segment provides Internet access services, mainly broadband services to general consumers. The Electronic Commerce (EC) segment is engaged in the sale, auction and shopping of commodities through Internet systems. The Others segment is involved in the development of Internet systems, as well as the management of fan clubs and the provision of services for beauty salon services through Internet. Excite Japan is a subsidiary of Itochu Corporation. Headquartered in Tokyo, the Company has three consolidated subsidiaries and three associated companies.
About Ozura Mobile
Ozura Mobile is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nextnation Communication Berhad and is a leading international developer and publisher for mobile games and game developer engine to carriers, aggregators, mobile phone manufacturers and service providers. The company creates games for the mobile phones based on the J2ME, BREW and Symbian platforms. Ozura Mobile’s games are available all over the world through its distribution network of partners spanning across 130 countries. It is expected that the growth of mobile phones supporting these platforms will exceed one billion units worldwide in 2008.
About Nextnation
Nextnation’ a mobile application service provider’ enables businesses and individuals to access’ connect’ and transact across today’s complex global mobile networks. Its core product MINDCEPâ„¢ Platform is a mobile multimedia communication platform’ facilitating and enabling mobile data transmission worldwide using WAP’ MMS’ SMS and Java technologies. MINDCEPâ„¢ is connected to some of the largest premium messaging networks in the world in order to offer a broad range of services from content distribution to mobile m-commerce and place the company at the forefront of this rapidly growing messaging market. Additional news and information about the company is available at www.nextnationnet.com.
Source- http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/8/prweb427786.htm
Technorati : Japan, Mobile, Ozura
Ice Rocket : Japan, Mobile, Ozura
Qualcomm acquires Qualphone for $18 m
BANGALORE: Qualcomm, the U.S.-based leader of Code Division Multiple Access or CDMA phone technologies, has announced the acquisition of another American company, Qualphone, which is a key provider of software to drive multimedia content to mobile devices over the Internet, for $18 million in cash. While Qualcomm has laboratories in
Bangalore,
Hyderabad and Mumbai where Indian engineers are helping the company to create tomorrow’s TV-on-mobile-phone solutions, Qualphone leverages its smaller research team in
Bangalore to deliver flagship products in the area of IMS (that is, Internet Protocol-based Multimedia Systems). With the coming together of the two companies, their Indian R&D teams will soon coalesce into an unbeatable combination of talents, feels Qualcomm’s
India and SAARC President Kanwalinder Singh.
He was speaking to The Hindu, in a special briefing on the occasion of the acquisition announcement made on Friday, in
San Diego, California, which is home to both companies. Qualcomm has created MediaFLO, a technology that will help mobile phones of both streams – CDMA and Global Services Mobile (GSM) – to go `3G’ or third generation. This means they can exchange text, data and pictures – and TV – at broadband speeds.
The mobile TV technology that had been adopted by a global consortium of 44 handset makers and telecom providers is being test-run in the
U.K., the
U.S. and
Japan and is likely to be offered to customers starting next year.
Unlike terrestrial TV, the FLO technology was interactive – that meant viewers could respond with requests for additional feeds or order supplementary services, Mr. Singh explained.
And when can Indians hope to view TV on their mobiles? That depends on the telecom companies and how soon they go `3G’ – but it may happen within a year of its global availability: that is Qualcomm’s estimate.
Source- http://www.hindu.com
Technorati : CDMA, India, Mobile, Qualcomm, USA
Ice Rocket : CDMA, India, Mobile, Qualcomm, USA
