NTT DoCoMo to demo LTE handset
By Phil Goldstein
NTT DoCoMo will demonstrate a prototype LTE handset later this month at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain, according to NEC, one of the operator's LTE development partners. The prototype marks a significant step forward for the industry, which has thus far focused its attention on LTE modems for computers and other non-phone gadgets.
The Japanese carrier is one of a handful of wireless operators around the world making aggressive strides to deploy LTE this year. TeliaSonera has the world's first commercial LTE network online in Oslo and Stockholm, and Verizon Wireless plans to deploy LTE in the United States this year in 25-30 commercial markets, covering 100 million POPs.
Much of the industry's LTE rhetoric to date has been spent on network buildouts and technical specifications, rather than bringing commercial phones to market. LTE handsets are not expected to be widespread until 2011, and likely won't reach mass market appeal until sometime after that.
NTT DoCoMo has been working with Fujitsu, NEC and Panasonic on prototype LTE handsets and other terminals, and plans to spend between $3.3 billion and $4.4 billion to deploy LTE over the next five years. In a release, NEC said that concept device will demonstrate the "transmission of high resolution video through its 'LTE-PF' equipped communications platform and showcases the advantage of high-speed LTE communications." [FierceWireless]
NTT DoCoMo Outlines New Mobile Directions
By Jason Ankeny
Japanese mobile operator NTT DoCoMo announced it will shift the direction of its business and focus on personalization of services as well as the development of converged services, with an emphasis on mobile video.
According to NTT DoCoMo, which presently serves over 53 million customers, the Japanese market has reached maturity, minimizing prospects for future subscriber growth unless operators make significant leaps forward via services spotlighting real-time immediacy, personal authentication and locating capabilities.
DoCoMo said it will respond by reviewing its operational structure, promoting customer-focused marketing and improving customer satisfaction response--plans call for personalized services and functions catering to different lifestyles and subscriber needs, converged services tailored to specific usage scenarios and value-added mobile video efforts launched in collaboration with content providers.
In addition, NTT DoCoMo said it will provide handsets and devices geared to specific consumer needs, vowing to adopt open platforms in addition to enhancing hardware and software functions and diversifying designs and user interfaces. Also on tap: LTE-based mobile broadband services and new businesses in fields such as ecology, safety, security and health management. DoCoMo added it will expand its international businesses and create new domestic investments and alliances.
NTT DoCoMo Moves Ahead With 'Super 3G'
By Jim Barthold
NTT DoCoMo's decision to push ahead with a "Super 3G" network suggests that LTE is on target for market introduction as early as 2010. DoCoMo has named long-time vendor partner Fujitsu to supply Evolved Packet Core (EPC) equipment for the network and previously selected NEC for basestations and terminals.
While potentially confusing terminology and technology, Super 3G, in DoCoMo's parlance, equates to pre-LTE. In an interview with FierceWireless, Peter Jarich, research director for Current Analysis said that DoCoMo has said they were going to do some (LTE) soft launches maybe next year. "DoCoMo wants to move early."
Whether it's called Super 3G or pre-LTE, DoCoMo is moving apace, almost serving as a huge beta testbed for interested providers around the world as the LTE standard evolves. Jarich added that Verizon Wireless will likely have LTE in 2010-2011. But for European operators 2013 may make more sense. [FierceWireless]
LTE Network Subscribers: From Zero to 32 Million in Three Years
Despite the fact that no LTE (Long Term Evolution) network is expected to be commercial before 2010, a new study from ABI Research forecasts that by 2013, there will be more than 32 million subscribers using LTE networks. Three of the largest mobile operators – China Mobile, Vodafone and Verizon Wireless – have announced plans to adopt LTE.
Asia-Pacific countries will account for the largest regional share. “ABI Research anticipates about 12 million Asia-Pacific LTE network subscribers in 2013, “ says senior analyst Nadine Manjaro. “The remainder will be split about 60-40% between Western Europe and North America.”
LTE commitments from NTT DoCoMo and KDDI in Japan will further boost adoption.
The long wait for the Chinese government to issue 3G licenses may become a factor driving LTE in that country: “It wouldn’t surprise me to see some operators skip over 3G and go straight to LTE,” says Manjaro. “Although China’s own TD-SCDMA 3G technology will be deployed on a small scale during the Olympics, I can’t see operators spending billions to implement that or any other 3G technology if they will just have to upgrade within a year or two.”
Since LTE deployment involves new hardware and software, a number of industry sectors stand to benefit. Before 2010, it will be vendors of the test equipment used to ensure network interoperability and performance. Next will come vendors of the required network infrastructure equipment itself.
Finally, it will be device manufacturers. Because LTE is primarily about data, not voice, its first phase will see devices such as USB dongles for computers: ABI Research estimates 53 million to ship by 2013. Because LTE will compete directly with cable and DSL services, in-home modems will also see volume shipments, as will Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) and Ultra-Mobile PCs (UMPCs). Manjaro calls the device market “a huge opportunity.”
Napster Debuts New Over-The-Air Video Service on NTT DoCoMo Handsets
Napster, the pioneer of digital music, announced today that its unlimited over-the-air mobile subscription service in Japan will now include unlimited access to a high-quality digital video service to complement its music subscription service. The new video service, Napster Clips, puts high-quality music videos into the palms of purchasers of the new N906iL onefone model handset from Japan's leading mobile operator, NTT DoCoMo.
Napster Clips is a broadband video service that users can view from a full-size browser on the N906iL handset over either the NTT DoCoMo 3G/FOMA(TM)* mobile network or via NTT DoCoMo's new "Home U(TM)*" service -- a high-speed wireless LAN connection via home broadband network. Also, for the first 20,000 applicants of the N906iL onefone handset customers, NTT DoCoMo will include a free "Comes With Napster Music and Video" 6-month subscription to Napster's unlimited over the air Napster To Go audio and video music subscription service.
"We are proud to partner with NTT DoCoMo on the launch of our first-ever mobile music video service," said Napster President Brad Duea. "Providing Napster users with wireless mobile access to the world of music -- including videos -- over either a mobile network or WiFi network at home, is a significant milestone in our ongoing effort to expand and enhance our mobile offerings."
Napster To Go subscribers can view high-quality digital music videos of dozens of their favorite music artists from Japan and around the world through their new N906iL handset. In addition to viewing high-quality digital music videos and receiving full-length songs directly on their mobile handsets, when subscribers use the Napster To Go OTA service to download songs without connecting to a PC those tracks will be "bookmarked" and added to their PC collection.
Further integrating the PC and OTA experience, users of the Napster To Go OTA service are able to view Playlists available on the PC and download them directly to their handsets over-the-air. Users of the N906iL series of DoCoMo phones will also still enjoy the option of side-loading content from the PC onto their phones, as with any other Napster To Go compatible portable music device.
NTT DoCoMo and Napster Japan will be rolling out a co-marketing campaign with the launch of the new video service, which will coincide with the handset launch. [FierceWireless]
LiMo Foundation to Debut Mobile Linux Platform
Open source industry consortium the LiMo Foundation announced the first release of its Linux-based LiMo Platform will arrive in March, with API specifications now available to the developer population.
LiMo Foundation co-founders Motorola, NEC, NTT DoCoMo, Panasonic Mobile Communications, Samsung Electronics and Vodafone all collaborated on Release 1, promising nearly all of the enabling technology has already been commercially deployed and proven within handsets now on the retail market.
The modular open software platform is plug-in-based and hardware-independent, promising a secure runtime environment for downloaded applications.
Linux was selected as the core technology for the LiMo Platform for its acceptability by the whole mobile industry, its rich functionality and scalability, its record of success in embedded systems and mobile phones and its potential to easily "cross-platformize" with other product categories. Middleware components may be implemented in either C or C++ programming languages.
"With LiMo announcing the first release of the platform that is common across many handset vendors and models, the stage is set for mobile innovation on Linux," said Vodafone's director of terminals technology and LiMo Foundation vice chairperson Guido Arnone in a prepared statement.
"The LiMo Platform enables operators and handset makers to assign greater investment to technologies that improve the consumer experience and technology vendors and ISVs to target their products for a software platform that is being broadly adopted by the whole industry," he added. [FierceDeveloper/FierceWireless]
NTT DoCoMo to Launch Child-Friendly F801i Handset
NTT DoCoMo, Inc. and its eight regional subsidiaries announced today that the FOMA™ F801i, a new child-friendly 3G mobile phone loaded with special features for the safety and convenience of children, will go on sale December 20.
Building on the popular FOMA SA800i model that DoCoMo released in March 2006, the F801i offers many new or improved child-friendly features (see attachments) for security, theft/loss prevention, ease of use and more.
In an emergency, the child can quickly switch on the phone's 100-decibel alarm, which produces two types of noise alternately. When the alarm is activated, the phone also emits a bright light (high-intensity LED) that is easily visible to people in the surrounding area.
The phone can be set to automatically notify loved ones when the alarm is activated, and provide the handset's current location as well. Computer-generated phone calls can be placed to up to three registered numbers and messages can be sent to registered individuals who subscribe to the i-mode™ location service called imadoco search™. In addition, the child can discreetly message their location to a registered imadoco search user by simply pushing a button on the side of the phone.
If the phone's power is switched off, a presetting can enable the handset to automatically turn back on (in as little as five minutes) and message the incident and the phone's location to a registered DoCoMo phone. /PR
Mobile Video Revenues is Forecasted to Triple in 2007
A new report issued by market research firm Infonetics Research says operator revenue from mobile video services jumped 317 percent to almost $200 million worldwide in 2006, with revenues expected to triple in 2007. According to Infonetics, global mobile video subscriber totals increased more than 300 percent between 2005 and 2006, and should exceed 46 million users by 2010.
The Asia Pacific consumer market will lead with 57 percent of the world total in 2006, followed by the Europe/Middle East/Africa market at 31 percent and North America at 10 percent--Infonetics cites the low costs of SK Telecom and NTT DoCoMo's respective mobile video services as the driving force behind the Asia Pacific market's prowess.
"We will continue to see healthy growth in the mobile video services market as mobile operators expand the bandwidth of their existing 3G networks through HSDPA and MBMS, roll out dedicated broadcast networks, and deploy new mobile video service delivery platforms," said Infonetics directing analyst for broadband and IPTV Jeff Heynen in a prepared statement.
"Competition among service providers will keep subscription prices lower in the long term, but that revenue will be supplemented by incremental service revenue from on-demand viewing. We expect to see a spike in mobile video service revenue in 2008 due to the Summer Olympics in Beijing which, similar to last year's World Cup, is a deadline for many operators to get their mobile video services up and running," added Heynen. [FierceMobileContent]
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