(keitai-l) Communication is a beast, was: Re: wireless spam.

But Tanya,

> Journalists, even researchers and consultants, may be
> decidedly "uncool" in the annals of mobile geekdom, but I
> detect a certain "tinge" creeping into a discussion where
> such esteemed souls as Curt and Juergen wonder as to the
> earning power of these "alternative" professions.

since I am almost married to a journalist myself (a very
good one!) who turned to be a researcher and consultant now
(even a better one!) I have nothing against journalism per
se, but if I hate something than bad*) journalism.

Communication is a beast as we all learn daily in this list,
but here is a simple example how bad journalism can happen
and what financial impacts this possible can have:

Once upon a time (April 2001) somebody asked me what's inside
my CDMAone former DDI (now KDDI) phone, so I opened it up
(this page was not altered since April 2001!):
http://nooper.co.jp/showcase/gallery.php?s=11&l=en

Somebody else saw this (without ever contacting us) and created
this page:
http://www.cellular.co.za/technologies/imode/imode-inside-phones.htm

Suddenly my old private former DDI (now KDDI) phone turned
into an i-mode phone.

Somebody else saw this page and wrote in a magazine that
DoCoMo handsets work with Qualcomm chips...based on the
source above.

Later I saw business plans based on this information.

This all remind me on this children game...you create a
sentence, tell it to next child, they tell it further and so
on...later you compare the results of what the last child
heard of your original sentence. This even impressed me
as a child, but I had no idea at this time that journalism
(and often business plans) are based on this concept.

> After all, it is the journalists who will provide much of
> the content as the keitai evolves into something more than a
> cute display for cartoon characters and snappy tunes. And it
> is the researchers and consultants who will help take the
> technology into mass markets far beyond these 'toons and
> tunes. Well, at least, some of us strive on in the hope this
> will be so.

I hope so, too! But don't forget that toons and tunes are
already a mass market! :)

Juergen

*) My definition of bad journalism:

- No double check of research information.
- Typical German journalists who ask me about the soooo typical
  Japanese "vending machines for used panties".
- Journalists who translate Japanese pages only with Babelfish
  and not with translators.
- Journalists who are in a hurry and just don't care.
- Journalists who blame their sources for the b/s they wrote.
- Journalists who never question press releases and just publish them.

Basically it's one thing what I hate: Slobby research.