Wireless Internet Phenomenon
In
1999, Japanese NTT DoCoMo launched the i-mode, which is today
considered the first wireless Internet service on the way to the 3G
mobile systems. i-mode began as a "WAP-like," text-based mobile
information service provided by NTT DoCoMo. By 2001, there were over
1600 DoCoMo endorsed i-mode sites; some were free, others charged up to
$2.50 per month. DoCoMo handles the billing for the official sites and
keeps 9 percent of their revenues. In addition, as of 2001 there were
over 40,000 "unofficial" i-mode sites. i-mode is a brand, not a
technology. The technology is packet-switched overlay, as opposed to
circuit-switched digital voice, and offers "always-on" and "on-demand"
access to the Internet without users having to dial up. The technology
offers high-speed transmission of data at a reasonable cost. The
transmission rate is currently only 9.6 kbps, but i-mode already offers
multimedia applications, well-suited 3G devices with color displays,
sound, and other multimedia-supporting features, and a common billing
system for all service subscribers.
The i-mode mobile Internet access service has enjoyed
phenomenal success in Japan, winning more than 12 million subscribers
in a year and a half after its launch and reaching an unbelievable 23
million subscribers by mid-2001, surpassing the number of fixed line
subscribers.
i-mode wireless Internet service offers a broad variety
of consumer services, including entertainment (games, download of music
and ring tones, horoscopes, karaoke), multimedia messaging, information
(news, weather, market quotes, transportation schedules), financial
services (bank statements, money transfers, bill paying), database
queries (phonebooks, dictionaries, restaurant guides, city
information), and M-commerce (movie tickets, shopping, video rentals).
i-mode has attracted 700 partner and 30,000 nonaffiliated
content/applications providers to its platform, equally to as many as
WAP content providers throughout the world. Contrary to popular
misconceptions, i-mode does not attract the youth market only; a mere 7
percent of subscribers are teenagers, although their revenue per
subscriber is higher. E-mail, messaging, and voice are still the
driving applications for i-mode.
Several factors, including i-mode's design, content
strategy, business model, and technology, have contributed to its
success. Simple and functional handsets with easy-to-read screens, easy
navigation through content, ability to prioritize and personalize
most-popular content gave users easy access to wireless data and
services. Flexible billing systems did not stop end users from using
the services, and i-mode in return capitalized on the transaction
service fees. Content providers were encouraged also to provide more
services. There were no slotting fees, and anyone could become a
partner, but only the most-attractive content providers were bound to
receive premium placement.
i-mode is evolving and getting ready to jump into
the next 3G stage. There are speculations that it will make its way
into the U.S. market, but as things stand now, there are many cultural
and technological differences between the U.S. and Japanese markets
that will have negative effects on i-mode implementation in the United
States.
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