Tata DoCoMo To Start News Ticker Service On Cellphone Stand-by Screen In India, Which Is Very Common In Japan

Tata DoCoMo, which is a joint venture of a Tokyo-based giant mobile operator and the telecom arm of an Indian conglomerate group and started cellphone service in southern part of India last June, announced it would start i-Channel which helps subscribers to get latest news updates on cellphone stand-by screen. When you find an interesting… Continue reading Tata DoCoMo To Start News Ticker Service On Cellphone Stand-by Screen In India, Which Is Very Common In Japan

MCF Announces This Year’s Award-Winning Mobile Projects (1/2)

Last Friday, Mobile content forum (MCF)[J], a consortium of many Japanese mobile device developers and mobile app developers, announced this year’s award[J] winning projects, which were chosen from brand-new innovative projects that were released in the last twelve months. ———- Excellent Award (Mobile Content Category) Won by Weathernews, the world’s largest private meteorological company headquartered… Continue reading MCF Announces This Year’s Award-Winning Mobile Projects (1/2)

Smart.fm Fundraises USD3.37M From NTT

Japanese telecom giant NTT and Cerego Japan, an owner of a UGC-based social learning site Smart.fm(previously known as iKnow!), announced both had reached the agreement of the partnership in boosting online education business.   NTT is now considering to set up a new subsidiary focusing on online education business, and will create a number of mash-up… Continue reading Smart.fm Fundraises USD3.37M From NTT

Ad Agency Giant Lets Publishers Digitize Their Business, Now More Than Ever

Dentsu, the world’s largest ad agency, announced today it would join forces with Yappa, an iPhone/iPod software developer which is strong in developing e-publication online reader, and launch a marketplace dealing with digital periodicals this summer.  Twenty publishers will put their thirty magazines on sale at the marketplace called Magastore[J]. Magastore uses an original DRM… Continue reading Ad Agency Giant Lets Publishers Digitize Their Business, Now More Than Ever

Rakuten To Start P2P Online Political Donations For The First Time In Japan

Rakuten, one of Japan’s e-commerce giants, announced it would start a service enlightening voters on political participation in late July. The website accepts credit cards to donate your money to politicians whom you support. In the previous U.S. presidential election last year, Barack Obama carried a large amount of money from individual fundraisers on the… Continue reading Rakuten To Start P2P Online Political Donations For The First Time In Japan

NAVER, Korean based new communication search services landed on Japan, again

Yes, they come again. This time with solid determination and good amount of resources in Tokyo. NAVER, number one Web search service in Korea has started open beta service for Japanese market.It is their second entry for Japanese market since their first attempt which was ended 2005 due to focus on domestic market, or simply… Continue reading NAVER, Korean based new communication search services landed on Japan, again

Mail Order Giant To Release Wardrobe iPhone App

Osaka-based catalog mail order giant Senshukai[J] is going to introduce an iPhone/iPod app allowing you to check up showcases filled with fashionable clothes.   It is now under Apple’s consideration for upcoming release and will be available at AppStore next week. Senshukai has an experimental website, which is called Bellmaison Lab[J], developing and demonstrating new services… Continue reading Mail Order Giant To Release Wardrobe iPhone App

Now, Long Phone Conversation Makes You Fly For Free

EC-Navi[J], a Shibuya-based tech venture running several web services such as price comparison site for e-commerce users, tied up with Japan’s second largest mobile company KDDI, and plans to launch a nationwide cellphone service as an MVNO (mobile virtual network operator). The service will start on August 3rd, and it targets females in their 20s… Continue reading Now, Long Phone Conversation Makes You Fly For Free

CNET Japan To Be A Part Of Asahi Newspaper

CBS Interactive, which is the parent company of CNET, and Asahi Newspaper announced the two companies had agreed that the ownership of CNET Networks Japan[J] would be completely handed over to Asahi Newspaper on September 1st. CNET Networks Japan owns and runs several Japan-based tech websites including CNET Japan[J], ZDNet Japan[J], GameSpot Japan[J] and Tetsudo.com[J]… Continue reading CNET Japan To Be A Part Of Asahi Newspaper

Do Animated Tourist Guides Boost Local Economy?

Tokyo-based animation studio FanWorks[J], which is well known for a famous title “Yawaraka Sensha ” or “Soft Wartank”, tied up with animators and TV broadcasters in Toyama (a Honshu island’s prefecture facing the Sea of Japan), and launched a project to promote the prefecture’s sightseeing business by creating original animation titles[J/E/F/C/K] which are intended for… Continue reading Do Animated Tourist Guides Boost Local Economy?