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To: slacker711 who wrote (17168)	12/7/2001 10:00:56 PM
From: Eric L	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 34857

Slacker, << I think that the answers to both those questions are foregone conclusions. >> Now you and I know that, but Caxton is pretty optimistic about things. - Eric -

To: slacker711 who wrote (17168)	12/8/2001 11:23:51 AM
From: Eric L	Respond to of 34857

re: "KDDI is Gaining on DoCoMo" J@pan Inc Magazine's "W I R E L E S S W A T C H" offers interesting commentary on the business of wireless in Japan. I got a chuckle out of these comments in respnse to a UK Yahoo article called "KDDI is Gaining on DoCoMo" COMMENTARY: The title of this news item is complete garbage; KDDI will "gain on DoCoMo" when sumo wrestlers take up the tea ceremony. In other words, DoCoMo and i-mode have a commanding lead and KDDI -- and its three constituent networks (Au's cdmaOne system, DDI Pocket's PHS system, and Tu-Ka's PDC system) -- is too broke to do anything about it, despite any minor leads brought about by introducing new technology. While the GPS service ("eznavigation") is interesting and probably useful from Day 1 (see item below), the video download system ("ezmovie") probably won't take off until there are sufficient users to attract serious content providers -- and that won't happen until DoCoMo's M-Stage Video service gets going on i-mode (it's already available on DoCoMo's PHS network). This item is a very good example of why you can't believe all the mindless hype you read about Japan's wireless Webs. KDDI has also said that it will roll-out a new EZweb mobile information system infrastructure based on the WAP 2.0 standard by year end. --> KDDI is Gaining on DoCoMo uk.mobile.yahoo.com Source: Yahoo, November 14 EXTRACT: KDDI will launch video transmission (using MPEG4) and GPS services, and the pricing is absolutely competitive with DoCoMo's. The services will launch throughout Japan next month as a warm-up to next year's April roll-out of Au's new next-generation service, cdma2000 1X. The system is slower than FOMA, but twice as fast as the existing cdmaOne network. The KDDI 1X phones will operate at 144 Kbps. KDDI president Tadashi Onodera said that the rates were calculated with FOMA rates in mind and that the X1 handset will cost no more than half the price of a FOMA handset. <-- also: --> Mobile Phone Firms Tout New Services asahi.com Source: Asahi Shimbun, November 14 EXTRACT: Handset makers and service providers are touting new high-tech features to stimulate consumer interest in their wares. Among the most high-profile developments are phones that make use of the satellite-based global positioning systems (GPS). The first to make it to market with a GPS-enabled handset will be Au, the mobile phone firm affiliated with KDDI. KDDI plans to launch two GPS-enabled handsets: Hitachi's C3001H and Kyocera's C3002K. COMMENTARY: Location-based services (LBS) are already big money-makers on Japan's wireless Webs. J-Phone's J-Navi system actually warns the user that the map that is about to be displayed will cost JPY20 -- partly so as to prevent people from over-using the highly convenient map database system. J-Phone also operates a push-based area information system (see WW No. 32 for more details on each carriers' LBS). GPS is interesting, because the handset makers have been keen to find ways to tie new mobile wireless services to their handsets. Until now, content and service providers have generally ignored the handset (and onboard browser) since these have merely served as the platform via which content and services are provided. In other words, there's been no way for the handset makers to tap into the Web content and services revenue stream. The new GPS functionality probably won't change this, but there's no doubt the likes of Hitachi, Sony, and NEC would love to be able to bill users of their handsets for accessing onboard features that are tied to a central server. One lawyer at a large venture-focused law firm here told us recently that at least one large handset maker had formed a team to specifically look at how to cultivate such revenues. ... <-- - Eric -

To: slacker711 who wrote (17168)	12/9/2001 12:14:38 PM
From: Eric L	Respond to of 34857

re: Confusion over NEC Dual-Mode 3G Handset Delivery Schdule NEC said on Thursday it was still on track to deliver volume shipments of third-generation mobile phones to Europe next July-September, shooting down reports of a delay. The difficulty in pinpointing an exact launch date for the new 3G wireless technology, has fuelled conflicting reports and investor concerns. A Dow Jones Newswires report appearing on the Wall Street Journal Web site late on Wednesday said that NEC would put off delivery of dual-mode 3G phones to between September and November 2002. The report quoted Tadashi Komatsu, senior general manager of NEC's international operations unit in Tokyo. "Komatsu is not in the handset division and we have not been able to confirm why and where he made such a comment," Emi Hidaka (NEC spokeswoman) said. In a Financial Times story last week, NEC Chairman Hajime Sasaki was reported as saying that the firm's dual-mode 3G phones would be available early next year. But the newspaper did not specify whether Sasaki was referring to the calendar year or NEC's financial year, which begins in April. >> NEC Says On Track For 3G Europe Rollout December 6, 2001 Reuters NEC Corp, Japan's biggest cellphone maker, said on Thursday it was still on track to deliver volume shipments of third-generation mobile phones to Europe next July-September, shooting down reports of a delay. NEC spokeswoman Emi Hidaka said the company had not altered its schedule for delivering the dual-mode handsets, which would be capable of working with both high-speed 3G and existing phone networks, to Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. "We are still doing business with Hutchison on the premise that the handsets will come out in the third quarter of 2002," Hidaka said. The difficulty in pinpointing an exact launch date for the new 3G wireless technology, capable of delivering video and Internet access to mobile phones at high speed, has fuelled conflicting reports and investor concerns. A Dow Jones Newswires report appearing on the Wall Street Journal Web site late on Wednesday said that NEC would put off delivery of dual-mode 3G phones to between September and November 2002. The report quoted Tadashi Komatsu, senior general manager of NEC's international operations unit in Tokyo. "Komatsu is not in the handset division and we have not been able to confirm why and where he made such a comment," Hidaka said. The report said that Hutchison Whampoa, NEC's largest customer for 3G phones outside Japan, "did not regard the timetable as slipping" but was now using the phrase "second half of 2002" as its launch target. Hutchison officials in Asia said they could not comment on the report. Hutchison said last month that it had placed an order with NEC for more than one million 3G handsets. In a Financial Times story last week, NEC Chairman Hajime Sasaki was reported as saying that the firm's dual-mode 3G phones would be available early next year. But the newspaper did not specify whether Sasaki was referring to the calendar year or NEC's financial year, which begins in April. Dual-mode phones are considered key to the success of 3G services because they would allow users to make calls in areas where no 3G infrastructure was yet in place. Among carriers holding costly 3G licences in Europe, Hutchison is one of the most bullish on prospects for the fledgling technology and has one of the most aggressive rollout schedules for operations in Britain, Italy, Austria, Sweden and Australia. << - Eric -