Indeed, envy it is. Was it market conditions that helped Imode along or
were the market conditions assumed after we realized imodes success? I
can agree that the usual press reasons for 'imode being successful' is
not enough. Assumptions on a population about why they use a service or
a technology that no other country has or understands(the press?) I
guess relates to natural instinct... if you don't understand, don't
actually find out, just come up with your own theories (like all culture
and religion)
Many users in Europe and the usa are certainly jealous of the imode
service in japan. I myself as a user and also as someone who has been in
the UK cellular industry for nearly eight years is jealous. Why can I
not have that service? I am now based in Canada and see more and more
the holes in networks marketing strategy and general dynamics.
Mobile technology has changed the lives of so many users, bought safety
and contactibility to millions all around the world. With this
technology having such an impact on businesses and consumers, should it
not be a right to have the best services possible as a user? Just
because your average user probably doesn't know what they are missing
and what technology their network is not giving them, does it mean they
shouldn't be entitled to have it?
Debates in Europe on WAP versus Imode have been raging on for a long
time, which one will win, the reasons why and where and how. Networks
in Europe and the USA have daily press releases on who they are
partnering with, where and how. Details of fast services, location based
services and all manner of other goodies. The shareholders are kept
happy and everyone remains in the tit got tat network vs network game,
apart from the users. I believe Docomo didn't make too much of a global
fanfare about being the first 3G network. They preferred to wait or be
second place and actually launch something.
Here in Canada, the networks are doing anything they can to get more and
more subscribers. Subscriber numbers matter. Attract new users with
cheap poor quality phones and with 3 year contracts penciled in amongst
the small print. Little or no fancy services or cool technologyu is used
to attract and retain a customer. Legalities of a contract can.
Confusion marketing dominates, all the networks make it so confusing to
tell which one is better, the assumption is that the consumer has less
deciding power to go to another network if every networks plans and
service fees are completely incomprehensible.
Looking back over the last two years when WAP arrived in Europe and WAP
services arrive in the USA, something struck me as missing.
---- Research
There seems to be no or little research done on what the market sectors
and consumer segments actually want. I am not talking about the usual
question like 'do you use WAP' ..... 'err no' but strategic research
that looks outside of the box and further down the line towards the near
future.
Not just cellphones but
MP3
Minidisc
Pagers
Digital Cameras
Location based services
Full studies of Gen x, Gen Y and boomers
In the early days of 'mcommerce' companies like amazon leapt forward to
provide ordering via a WAP device with little or no thought to how the
service would benefit users. Surely ordering goods from a mobile device
is for items that you need in the next minute, hour or day??? You order
your book via a wap device and it arrives 4 days later through the post?
Why not just order it online when your back at the office??
To save myself from jabbering on all morning I'll zip my mouth shut.
However, just to leave with a passing thought in your minds and mine
(whilst I go to the mall) would it not be a good idea for European
Networks to concentrate on being 'fat piped' and leaves the rest to
brands that actually matter to all age groups? (yahoo, msn, aol, Disney,
virgin.....harry potter?) I can't see teens getting excited about the
image of Vodafone and the cronies that prop it up every year.
Salut
Conrad buck
Montreal, Canada
conradbuck@sympatico.ca
-----Original Message-----
From: keitai-l-bounce@appelsiini.net
[mailto:keitai-l-bounce@appelsiini.net] On Behalf Of James Governor
Sent: Wednesday, November 21, 2001 7:17 AM
To: keitai-l@appelsiini.net
Subject: (keitai-l) the usual entourage of Japan Bashing foreign
press???
haven't posted in a while, but i just wanted to say something about the
notion of "Japan bashing" by foreign agents.
one irritating thing about this list is the doublethink.
there are a number of contributors (many of whom i assume from their
names are not native Japanese) that have made regular postings to the
effect that outsiders don't and can't understand. that we don't see the
girls in Shibuya with their keitai and the businessmen looking on
longingly... so we will NEVER understand the DoCoMo model blah blah
blah. That argumement always seemed utter twaddle to me.
Another train of thought is that(and i agree with Mr Funk and others
here) DoCoMo succeeded because of its business model, with some
favourable market conditions that helped it arrive at this model.
What worries me is that "outsiders" have been castigated on this site in
the past and been told we can't understand because we aren't in Japan.
Now we are told, it seems, that all we need to do is stop bashing Japan
and we will understand. well - which is it? (of course i appreciate
there are different people on this list and so different voices)
Japan bashing? Well here's the news - maybe you haven't seen it because
you are in Japan, the beating heart of the mobile revolution. The fact
is that DoCoMo has been seen as a huge success by businessmen and folks
all over the world, and in the general, business, media and mobile press
and so on. Just check out BusinessWeek's coverage of NTT's successes,
for an example. Or just look at the way Sony is perceived.
If you saw the really negative media coverage on WAP in Europe (the
headline WAP is CWAP is a commonplace) and US mobile data models you
would realise that "Japan-bashing" is well wide of the mark. The
opposite is true - it's more like keitai envy. (and no, envy doesn't
always lead to bashing. hopefully it will lead to imitation)
We are here to learn. Please don't insult us for it.
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Received on Wed Nov 21 18:58:01 2001