NKB[J], the transit ad agency running well-known restaurant guide Gourmet Navigator(Gournavi) on the web, is now discussing in-subway 1-seg TV service (refer to these stories about 1-seg) with Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications for obtaining a TV station license. The company expects the service will be provided in subway trains running, at subway stations and underground shopping malls, and it keeps passengers update with news, weather, regional event information and delays of train’s arrivals.
The ministry expects the service will eliminate information dead zones in undergrounds where radio signals cannot reach, and it may also contribute to preventing people from panic and fear when a natural disaster hit our city and everyone’s cellphone is out of service.
The company expects test operation to be completed in this year, and its official service will be released next year if everything goes well.
Masaru IKEDA