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DD Live From MMR: Mobile Integration
http://promomagazine.com/news/breakingnews/mmr_mobile_061605/
By Tim Parry
Jun 16, 2005 6:05 AM
The number of mobile marketing programs are growing by leaps and bounds. And as the average age of the typical mobile users creeps upwards, mobile campaigns can be more successful when integrated with other promotional tactics.
"Mobile is a channel, not a strategy," m-Qube President & CEO Jeffrey Glass said yesterday at the Mobile Marketing Roadshow in New York.
Boston-based m-Cubed's research indicates there are 45 million mobile device users under the age of 25 (a number expected to grow to 52 million in 2006), but as those users age the need to combine it with other tactics will become important to reach consumers at their most comfortable touch points.
Even as the mobile user ages, mobile marketing remains a key component of youth marketing, Glass said. However, these campaigns won't work if marketers keep their "grown-up hat" on.
"You can't think that because you wouldn't be engaged by something on your Blackberry that a kid wouldn't," Glass said. "When you're marketing to kids, you have to think like a kid."
Consumers spent roughly $6.4 billion on wireless data in 2004, which included downloads of music, ringtones and images as well as subscription rates for services such as text messaging.
"Those are real dollars being spent," Glass said.
Glass pointed to Digitas, Inc.'s March guerrilla campaign with General Motors' Catch A G6 sweepstakes as a good example of integration. TV ads for the sweeps steered viewers to a dedicated Web site, where visitors found instructions on how to enter for a chance to win $1 million by sending a cell phone picture-message of a Pontiac G6 to a short-code number.
Mobile campaigns give marketers out-of-home capability to engage consumers with a short-code placed on a billboard, at a ballpark or just about anywhere a mobile device can be used.
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DD New role for cell phones gets tryout overseas
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8293349/
The Associated Press
Updated: 9:20 p.m. ET June 20, 2005
NEW YORK - Already a device of multiple disguises, from camera to music player and mini-TV, the cell phone's next trick may be the disappearing wallet.
After all, since more than a quarter of the people on the planet already carry around cell phones, and hundreds of millions are joining them every year, why should they bring along credit and debit cards when a mobile device can make payments just as well?
At the simplest level, all that's needed is to embed phones with a short-range radio chip to beam credit card information to a terminal at a store register. It's not unlike the wireless system used to pay tolls on many highways or the SpeedPass keychain wand used to buy gas at Exxon Mobile Corp. pumps.
This is already a reality in Japan, where NTT DoCoMo Inc. says 3 million cell phone subscribers use its Mobile Wallet service to buy things at 20,000 stores and vending machines.
Similar services may be on the way in the United States and Europe. MasterCard International Inc. has been testing phone-based versions of its PayPass contactless payment technology since 2003, and may conduct a significant market trial next year.
But there also are more ambitious visions brewing that contemplate the cell phone as a new focal point for managing your personal finances. The phone would supplant not only credit and debit cards, but wallets, checkbooks, Web sites, computer programs like Quicken, and online bill payment services such as PayPal or CheckFree.
While the mightiest players in Western banking have yet to embrace that notion, and some are dubious of the appeal, the concept has drawn interest in other regions and may get a tryout here soon.
A small technology company named C-Sam Inc. recently succeeded in launching its OneWallet cell phone platform with corporations in the United Arab Emirates, India and Japan.
Executives for the Chicago-based company assert they're about to sign on one of the biggest U.S. banks and one of the nation's top issuers of store-brand credit cards to conduct trials of the platform, which can be used to manage a variety of accounts and transactions from a cell phone.
In the United Arab Emirates, OneWallet is being marketed by U.A.E. Exchange as a convenience to that nation's huge work force of expatriates from India who regularly wire money home. So far, there are about 400 users.
Alphonso Francis, a Bombay native who works for U.A.E. Exchange in Dubai, sends money three times a month to his family in India.
The process usually is a drag. "I have to spend one and a half hours in traffic, pay for my parking, and then spend another one and half hours in traffic ... all just to make a transaction which takes only two minutes at the transfer house," he said.
Now, using OneWallet on his phone, he enters his PIN number, designates which account the funds should come from, the recipient, and whether it should go to a bank account or a Western Union-type outlet in India. The order is transmitted over the cell phone's Internet connection in seconds.
Despite the logic of tying all your financial dealings to a device that many people keep by their side at all times, major credit card companies don't see the phone as a convenient nerve center for managing finances. The card companies' main goal is to drive more spending — and card transaction fees — by making the phone a quick way to pay with a single designated account.
"The benefits of having a wallet on your phone with multiple cards are overblown," said Murdo Munro, a MasterCard executive involved with PayPass. "If a consumer has to boot up an application on the phone, and then go through four or five menus, and then choose a card to make a payment, that's an awful lot slower and less convenient than just taking a card out of your wallet."
The PayPass system aims to improve even on that step. A credit card number is embedded in a chip that is activated by waving it in front of a reader, ringing up a sale quicker than handing plastic to a merchant or swiping it.
That technology is already gathering momentum without being installed in phones: In May, JPMorgan Chase & Co. announced plans for a mass-market rollout of MasterCard and Visa cards with a radio chip, starting this summer in Atlanta with nearly 1 million of the cards going out to consumers. Likewise, major merchants led by McDonald's Corp. and 7-Eleven Inc. are already installing radio terminals over which customers can flash these new-age plastic cards.
But C-Sam founder Sam Pitroda, a rags-to-riches telecommunications entrepreneur from India, sees the mobile wallet as a means to empower the masses in emerging markets and as a prospective boon for financial institutions, wireless companies and retailers.
"There are 1.8 billion cell phone users, but not 1.8 billion checking accounts," Pitroda said. "So there's a big potential for banks if they can get more people to open accounts, even if it's just $50 or $100."
One wild card that may bolster the case for Pitroda's wider vision — making the cell phone more than just an oddly shaped credit card — is the wireless industry, where network operators may eye new revenue streams from financial services.
Notably, the wireless payment transmitters in NTT DoCoMo's phones are not connected in any way to the circuitry of the overall device, so there's no way to integrate charge transactions with a wallet application on the handset.
But Nokia Corp. and Motorola Inc. are developing mobile handsets that integrate the payment chip with the rest of the phone, opening the way for more innovative applications.
Handset makers rarely invest in new technologies without interest from cellular carriers. Which means the wireless wallet could make a push even without the financial industry behind it.
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SRM, Thanks...that is exactly what I was looking for. Glad you could find it!
SS9173
Nasdaq listing requirements: I assume Neom would fall under the criteria of an initial listing which requires a $5 minimum bid. I searched the Nasdaq website for relisting requirements but didn't find anything.
See this link: http://www.nasdaq.com/about/nasdaq_listing_req_fees.pdf
SS9173
DD for a slow day..."A week in Wireless" (from an email I receive from aweekinwireless.com)
A Week in Wireless #188
24th June 2005
In a bid to cement - or revive - its pioneer status, NTT DoCoMo has for some time been dabbling in the dark arts of the fourth generation. It strikes the Informer that this is a little like shutting the stable door before the horse has been born, but DoCoMo has long been keen to wield true international power and stealing a march on 4G standardisation is one way to go about it. DoCoMo's leadership in WCDMA - perhaps because it was restricted to its own J-WCDMA flavour - won it little genuine influence in the global 3G scene.
The Japanese carrier this week revealed that, last month, it had managed to hit a data rate of 1Gbit/s in a test that had the handset (on the back of a flatbed truck, no doubt) travelling at 20kph. Motion is the key achievement here; the magic number data rate had previously been hit during stationary trials. The tech was developed in house and involved the acronym equivalent (almost) of the old school house sentence about the fox and the dog that uses every letter in the alphabet.
Where DoCoMo has perhaps more successfully sown its international seed is in the global spread of i-mode. The latest convert is UK-based O2 and the Informer lunched with O2 and assembled hacks this week to hear about the carrier's plans. For more on this, check out Spotlight.
With WCDMA still bedding in, DoCoMo may have an eye on competing technologies that could threaten the (desired) status quo. Part of its 4G solution is an OFDM variant, but not the Flash-OFDM pedalled by Flarion that this week, it was announced, is to enjoy a much sought after commercial deployment.
In what must represent a blow to the CDMA450 crowd, the Finnish communications ministry awarded a 450MHz licence to Digita, an outfit that is to deploy Flarion's solution to provide wireless broadband to parts of Finland that are beyond the reach of DSL services. Statistically it always looked likely that CDMA450 would lose out; among the seven contenders for the license, technology choice was weighted five to two in favour of Flash OFDM.
Flarion's proprietary solution has been tested by big name operators in the US, Europe and Japan but, until now, none has had the balls to step beyond their standards safety zone. Julien Grivolas, an Ovum market watcher, felt the news was a big result for Flarion, suggesting that the 450MHz band could be fertile ground for the upstart, while highlighting the battle that will have to be fought with the more entrenched CDMA450 solution.
It was a week for variant technological solutions, and newcomer successes in fact, with T-Mobile's Czech concern announcing its intention to deploy a TDD UMTS solution from IPWireless. Plans call for the network to be in place in Prague by the end of this year, with nationwide rollout continuing to the point where, in a year or so's time, half the Czech population will be covered.
Not all the news was about choosing one technological path over another, though, as Motorola and NTT DoCoMo - keeping its fingers in all the pies - demonstrated with the launch announcement of the Foma M1000 this week. The US vendor claims that the M1000 is the world's first WCDMA/GSM/GPRS/WiFi handset and - contrary to usual handset industry timelines - that the phone will be available from the first of next month, only a week away. It's good news for Motorola; an extension of its success in breaking into fortress DoCoMo last year.
The US-based world number two was also the centre of swirling rumours around a possible purchase of, or investment in, UK handset wannabe Sendo this week. The UK vendor has long been seen as in need of a partner with some genuine financial clout. High profile legal spats with Microsoft and Ericsson, delays around key constituents of its product portfolio and the kind of experiences in the market that you would expect a small, European handset start-up to encounter have all taken their toll. Neither side would comment but Sendo's position doesn't look comfortable.
Back to WiFi/3G compatibility, though, and beleagured Canadian vendor Nortel this week announced that, together with BB Mobile, which is a division of Japanese ISP Softbank (you'll remember the unseemly squabbles over Softbank's attempts to get stuck into the Japanese 3G market), it had achieved seamless voice and data handoff between UMTS and wireless LAN networks. Meanwhile Intel's dream of a one chip world got one wafer closer with the unveiling of a single prototype chip to support all WiFi standards.
Not all is bliss in the silicon world, though. Broadcom and Qualcomm have been spitting chips, so to speak, over a patent dispute and this week the US International Trade Commission weighed in with an investigation into the wrangles. Broadcom has complained that Qualcomm is infringing its patents through the import of wireless handset silicon that it manufactures in the far east. Qualcomm hasn't issued a comment yet and Broadcom has played the frustrated peacemaker, talking up its attempts to resolve the situation through less formal discussions.
Last week we reported that the European Commission had initiated investigations into the behaviour of the European standards body ETSI regarding an obscure restrictive practice known as a "patent ambush". This occurs when proprietary technology is incorporated into a standard, and then patented before the standard comes into effect, thus compelling the industry to pay royalties to the owner. Now, the Commission has given notice that it is seriously concerned about the practice, opening a case against the US RAM designer Rambus.
Rambus is already facing allegations from the US Federal Trade Commission that it deceived the standards committee JEDEC over one of its designs in 2002. The Commission, it seems, has been interested in the case since 2003, but the investigation only came to light in a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Last month, the FTC reopened its file on Rambus after allegations that Rambus shredded important documents in the case.
Let's talk markets, though, and there have been varying degrees of success and failure for wireless firms this week. To start with some good news, UK mobile content delivery outfit Bango darted onto the London Alternative Investment Market, raising itself £7m in the process. To many of the companies we write about, of course, this is monthly beer money but the youthful UK player was more than happy to pocket the cash and accept the £35m valuation that the partial float implied.
Fellow UK firm and satcomms player Inmarsat also enjoyed a healthy week in London, this time on the LSE. The firm's IPO last week was the largest for a UK company so far this year, netting £354.6m which is but a single planet in the £1.5bn galaxy of the company's debt. Still, the shares shot upwards by 15 per cent after we went to press on last week's edition, a welcome boost no doubt.
Not so fortunate is Taiwanese operator Chunghwa Telecom which this week conceded that it will not meet its deadline of the end of June for its own IPO, which it was hoped would set in motion share disposals that could net a multi-billion dollar reward. The process would also bring to an end the firm's official status as Government owned, reducing the state share to under 50 per cent. The firm's labour union through its spanner into the works, though, threatening all manner of spoiling tactics, from strikes to legal action.
Presumably determined to avoid such problems is Aussie incumbent Telstra. The Australian government wants to offload the 51.8 per cent in the operator that it retains - not surprisingly, with the stake valued at in excess of US$23bn. Legislation drawn up to enable the move could be passed as early as August this year, although the new laws would simply smooth the path and by no means guarantee the outcome. There is opposition to the move in the more remote areas of Australia, where citizens are concerned about the level of commitment they could expect from a privately held firm to invest in and upgrade rural communications solutions.
French construction to telecoms conglomerate Bouygues announced some favourable financials this week, raising its revenue targets for the year after the first quarter netted the firm a year on year profit increase of 41 per cent. The star turn came from the telecoms unit which made a profit of E85m. In the telecoms sector, Bouygues has always been the plucky, outspoken upstart in France. Perhaps not for very much longer as the rash of MVNOs invading the nation look set to cast Bouygues firmly in the establishment mould.
The French number two mobile operator, SFR, announced this week that it's to host the virtual operation of Coriolis Telecom. The news swiftly followed Tele2's French MVNO launch, on the Orange network. Sweden's Tele2 is looking to net 350,000 French customers by this time next year. The MVNO community grows ever more swollen each month, with more and more companies convinced that through iron-fisted margin management, they can succeed in winning business from their hosts. Market watcher IDC's new report on the opportunities for MVNOs in Western Europe seems to support the enthusiasm of the newcomers. The firm reckons MVNO users in the region will jump in number from 13 million this year to 47 million in four years' time.
Time for the old dogs to learn some new tricks and - more importantly - some new tricks that people will pay for.
Have a good one
The Informer
Send your feedback to: theinformer@mobilecomms.com
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New SEC reporting requirement for OTCC-BB stocks effective July 15, 2005:
Related links:
http://www.microcapleaders.com/history.html
http://complianceadvisor.com/doc/13823
http://searchwarp.com/swa3566.htm
Excerpt from microcapleaders link:
However, this does not mean that OTCBB companies can ignore Sarbanes-Oxley! Although they are exempt from some of the requirements, they must live up to most of them. As of July 15, 2005 the smaller companies must comply with the toughest part -- Section 404, which requires that a company demonstrate sound financial controls and test those controls regularly. As this can be costly, some emerging companies can no longer afford to report to the SEC or have decided to spend the money on developing their product instead. These companies either go private or decide to continue trading on the Pink Sheets.
The fact that Neom is adding the full-time Internal Auditor position is good for us as shareholders as it is more evidence that Neom is an "above board" financially responsible organization. I also see this as a stepping stone for them to get back on the Nasdaq when the time is right.
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Mcgrawsdad, I agree with you. IMO Neom must have something in the works that they feel fairly comfortable will increase the pps to $5 or higher to qualify for the Nasdaq. (I don't believe Neom would do a reverse split based on JP's report from the shareholder meeting last fall.) If I was managing the business considering its size, cash and profit (loss) position, I would not be hiring a full-time Internal Auditor - requiring up to $100K payroll and benefit expense for a position that has nothing to do with growing revenues - other than to get prepared for the Nasdaq. This is great news!
SS9173
JP, Good article. Of course, it would be a great article if he would have mentioned Neomedia and Paperclick. Nevertheless, thanks for posting. It is just another affirmation that the marketplace wants what Neom has to offer in a big way.
SS9173
OT Uh SOG usually I find your postings to be of great value, but this one I found to be pure jibberish! LOL.
SS9173
My prediction was almost right (low was 0.29 today). Then TS came to the rescue just before 1:00 PM to enable a complete reversal and end the day 12.67% higher. Today was just another example of how TS can quickly cause a sudden increase in any stock's pps.
The dramatic decrease in pps is being blamed on the extension of the Virgin settlement to July 14th. Maybe so, but someone must have learned about the postponement starting last Friday because that's when the stock started dropping from the approximate 0.50 pps level. These last 4 trading days have been a total manipulation IMO.
But, unless you are a trader, who cares? I am going to remain long in Neom as long as there is no degradation in the fundamentals. All the reasons why I invested in this stock are still in place today - it is only the timing that has slipped slightly to the right.
Someday, over the rainbow, Neom will be on the Nasdaq and Chas Fritz will make occasional appearances on CNBC. Mark my words.
So I remain confident, maybe not quite to Wooger's exuberance, but nevertheless very confident that by the time school restarts this fall today's pps levels will never be seen in this stock again. Because the Virgin lawsuit will be settled in Neom's favor, the BSDS merger will have been completed and Paperclick will have found its first major commercial application.
Lets plan to revisit this posting around Labor Day to see if I am right.
All JMHO FWIW
SS9173
ChangeWave MicroCap Investor Disclaimers And Disclosures
1. ChangeWave MicroCap Investor is a weekly newsletter which, along with its related publications and other services (collectively, the “Newsletter”), is edited by Tobin Smith, published by Phillips Investment Resources, LLC, and offered to the general public on a subscription basis.
2. Newsletter subscribers will receive the benefit of Tobin Smith’s and Josh Levine's commentary, analysis, opinions, advice and recommendations. The Newsletter is impersonal and does not provide individualized advice or recommendations for any specific subscriber or portfolio.
3. The Editors hereby disclose that on the respective dates set forth below the Editors Tobin Smith and Josh Levine, directly or indirectly, owned the following securities which are the subject of the commentary, analysis, opinions, advice, or recommendations in, or which are otherwise mentioned in, the newsletter set forth below:
Date: June 7, 2005
Newsletter: ChangeWave MicroCap Investor, June 7, 2005
Securities Owned By Tobin Smith:
Stock A (edited)
Stock B (edited)
Stock C (edited)
Stock D (edited)
NeoMedia Technologies (NEOM)
Stock E (edited)
Stock F (edited)
Stock G (edited)
Stock H (edited)
Securities Owned By Joshua Z. Levine:
Stock AA (edited)
Stock BB (edited)
Unless otherwise indicated above, all of these shares were acquired in market transactions.
The Editor has agreed not to buy or sell any of the above-listed securities within a minimum period of thirty trading days before or after making any new recommendation, or changing their published recommendation, regarding these securities in their Newsletter (calculated from the date the Newsletter featuring such recommendation is first posted on www.changewave.com/microcap or, if such recommendation is made in the applicable telephone hotline, the date the telephone hotline is first made available to subscribers), unless the market capitalization of the security at the close of business on that date is less than $300 million (the current Standard and Poors’ requirement for inclusion in the S&P SmallCap 600 index) in which case, the Editor has agreed to not buy or sell such security within a minimum period of thirty trading days before or after the applicable date. After the expiration of this period of five or thirty trading days, the Editor may hold, buy or sell such securities, and may cease to own any of the securities listed above. Since the Editor’s personal investing goals and risk tolerance may be different from those discussed in the Newsletter and/or circumstances may have changed by the expiration of the five or thirty day restricted period, the investment actions taken by the editor in the accounts the Editor directly or indirectly owns may vary from (and may even be contrary to) the advice and recommendations in the Newsletter.
4. Investing involves substantial risk. Neither the Editor, the publisher, nor any of their respective affiliates make any guarantee or other promise as to any results that may be obtained from using the Newsletter. While past performance may be analyzed in the Newsletter, past performance should not be considered indicative of future performance. No subscriber should make any investment decision without first consulting his or her own personal financial advisor and conducting his or her own research and due diligence, including carefully reviewing the prospectus and other public filings of the issuer. To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Editor, the publisher and their respective affiliates disclaim any and all liability in the event any information, commentary, analysis, opinions, advice and/or recommendations in the Newsletter prove to be inaccurate, incomplete or unreliable, or result in any investment or other losses.
5. The Newsletter’s commentary, analysis, opinions, advice and recommendations represent the personal and subjective views of the Editor, and are subject to change at any time without notice.
6. The information provided in the Newsletter is obtained from sources which the Editor believes to be reliable. However, the Editor has not independently verified or otherwise investigated all such information. Neither the Editor, the publisher, nor any of their respective affiliates guarantees the accuracy or completeness of any such information.
7. The Newsletter is not a solicitation or offer to buy or sell any securities.
8. Subscribers may submit questions to the Editor by e-mail to www.changewave.com/microcap or by writing to editor@changewave.com. However, since the Newsletter is impersonal and does not provide individualized advice for specific subscribers, the Editor can only answer questions of a general nature about the markets or specific securities. The Editor will make every effort to answer subscriber questions on our website (www.changewave.com/microcap) or in the pages of an upcoming issue of the Newsletter.
9. Neither the Editor, the publisher, nor any of their respective affiliates is responsible for any errors or omissions in any Newsletter.
10. Any subscriber who would like a copy of these “Disclaimers and Disclosures” may request a copy by calling 888-225-9373 or writing to Phillips Investment Resources, LLC, 2420A Gehman Lane, Lancaster, PA 17602, Attention: Disclosure, whereupon a copy will be mailed or faxed to such subscriber.
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From the Pondering Primate - The Fifth Wave
Another great blog by PP
http://theponderingprimate.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
The Fifth Wave
My favorite magazine came in yesterday. I think it's probably the most underrated publication on the street. So many articles of interest.
Here's one I found loads of ideas on. Visionary Om Malik contributed to the article.
Cheap computing, infinite bandwidth, and open standards are powering an epic technological transformation that will churn up huge new opportunities -- and perils for those who can't adapt
Wireless technologies, chiefly 3G (third-generation) and Wi-Fi, are expanding rapidly, making the Internet ubiquitous.
There's another singular aspect of what's happening now, one that by itself creates enormous opportunities. A hallmark of the previous four waves was the almost direct correlation between hardware and software.
If Intel (INTC) made a new chip, Microsoft came up with a new operating system that could make use of the extra oomph. The platform and how it could be used basically moved in predictable lockstep. This time, however, the platform -- broadband networks and the Internet -- is already in place, waiting for applications to catch up.
WIRELESS MARKETING
Most modern cell phones ship with location-based services. Leveraging them to do something other than simple route finding is a no-brainer. For instance, a company could marry the ability to pinpoint a person's physical location with new information distribution technologies like RSS. Users might be alerted to coupons or deals as they walk down an aisle in the grocery store or past a particular store. Merchants could experiment with dynamic pricing to move inventory on slow days or to increase foot traffic.
posted by Vangorilla @ 10:52 AM 0 comments
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Cloud8, I appreciate your professional knowledge here...another validation of Neom's professionalism and technology. Thanks for sharing.
SS9173
OT for Gkarman: I sent you private mail.
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Tradewinner, I think in the long run you will do fine. But until we get a paperclick related PR we could see the pps to continue its slide until it meets the next resistance level in the low .20's.
IMO we are still in the quiet period awaiting the BSDS merger, Virgin settlement and perhaps other developments which are contingent on the merger / settlement to be in place. Potentially that could be between July 14 (next
Virgin hearing) and July 31 (BSDS merger based on S-4 amended filing).
So while I think you bought today at a good price, I am not convinced we have bottomed out yet. I just mention this to those of you out there that are in Neom for the short term. If you are in it for the long term, there is nothing to worry about.
All JMHO FWIW.
SS9173
TS Update: Nothing on Neom in tonight's update. EOM
SS9173
JP, Excellent post. IMO your best words were the last paragraph:
"Other than this temporary delay, nothing else has fundamentally changed, except for those who truly understand. Those that do intuitively know today brought us one day closer to a better and more workable final settlement with Virgin."
I can only add that "patience is a virtue". Everyone should read this link to keep their senses on days like today.
http://www.fool.com/portfolios/rulebreaker/2001/rulebreaker010803.htm
Advice for the Impatient Investor
Patience is at the heart of good investing. It is essential to give your investments time to pan out, and to give yourself time not worrying about them. Here are three tips to more patient investing: 1) Dollar-cost average, so that entry and exit prices diminish in importance; 2) Wait for company conditions to change materially before selling; and 3) Try not to look at your stocks for a month.
By David Gardner
August 3, 2001
It's a discipline. It's a virtue. It's a card game. It's a curse.
It's at the heart of good investing.
It's what I wish I had more of. It's what I wish you had more of. It's what I can't believe more people don't have more of! It's the one thing I stress to more people at more public appearances these days than anything else.
It's Patience.
(And yes please, do capitalize that P, maestro.)
"Patience is a virtue few men hold." I don't remember the source of that epigram at the moment, but that's the first line that pops into my head when I think Patience.
Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics conveys a helpful way to think about virtues like Patience. I grew up thinking or being taught in binary, that virtue is the opposite of vice. So there's courage and its opposite cowardice, power and its opposite weakness, and compassion and its opposite cruelty. Thus, when I first began reading the Ethics after college I was quite surprised to learn that Aristotle disagreed with my worldview.
Aristotle presents virtue as a golden mean between two opposite and equally bad extremes. So on one extreme side you have too little patience, or no patience at all -- bad for all the reasons we can imagine. But, at the other extreme, there is too much patience! And that can create results just as bad as impatience. In the middle lies the golden mean, true Patience, which perfectly balances the two and is appropriately and effectively used in any situation. I have adopted Aristotle's view.
Investors have to try to hit this golden mean as well as anyone else. And given that the universal scales, in my experience, tilt heavily toward the "too little patience" side, we know what we must guard against, especially during a bear market.
"What am I going to do with my retirement now? Why haven't my stocks come back yet? Should I just sell them now, the darned things?"
That's the bear market version. The bull market version usually goes something more like this: "I can't wait to check my stocks today. Have I checked my stocks this hour yet? Have I? You know, it's been a few minutes; I really should check my stocks again, just to see how I'm doing." [Refresh browser. Refresh browser. Refresh browser.]
We want our investments to rise to their full height today, now, so that we might import a suddenly rosier future directly into the present. Now now now! And in so doing we fail to appreciate what we have right here right now.
The media don't help. The nature of rapid-fire reporting and ubiquitous CNN-tuned TVs in airports constantly insist that we be eager to find out what has changed. What's changed? Now? And what's changed now? And what does that then mean?
May I coin a word? It's "overnews." I believe we live in a world that is "overnewsed," causing many of us regularly to think in shorter time frames than are best for our own good. When we overfocus on the here and now we risk making poor decisions that fail to account for factors or likelihoods that are NOT part of the here and now. We are myopic. We zig with the zigs, and zag with the zags.
This can mean many unfortunate things in many different contexts in our lives. But you've tuned in to a money site, and specifically, a column normally given over to considering making investments in companies whose volatility and riskiness will try your patience. Anyway, here are three simple pieces of advice for the impatient:
1. Don't sweat entry prices and exit prices -- instead, dollar-cost average. If you're an investor who feels too much apprehension about buying in and too much potential regret about selling out, don't do it all-or-nothing. Do it piecemeal. Divide your money into thirds, let us say, and purchase the stock you're looking at on the 17th of each month for the next three months. Sell out of it the same way. Take the emotion and the short-term guessing out of the equation, and don't chase sixteenths. (How quaint -- already a reference to the market when it used to trade in fractions. How old-fashioned of me.) Please note of course that if you take this approach, you'll be paying more in commissions. Though if you're using a good discount broker, the paltry extra 30 bucks will probably be worth the peace of mind.
2. Ask yourself if company conditions have really changed. Rather than just sell a stock because it's gone up or down (and down more than up, these days), approach the decision from another angle. Ask yourself if the reasons for your having bought the stock in the first place have significantly changed. This is part of being a business-focused investor, not a zig-with-the-zigger.
3. Try not to look at your stocks for a month. Go on. It's summer. August is just beginning. Go for it. Don't look at your stocks. Can you do it? What does that say about you if you can? What does that say about you if you can't?
Yessirree, Patience gets short shrift in our society. As parents, we tend to insist on patience from our children when they're asking us in the car, "When will we get there?" or some other such nuisance. But do we truly model patience for our children (show, don't tell)? Do we point to examples in popular culture of where someone showed a heroic patience? Do we venerate old patient saints?
So what's the bottom line of this column? Are you impatient to find out? OK. Today's column was just a reminder: Patience.
-- David Gardner, August 3, 2001
David Gardner is co-founder of The Motley Fool, where investors write for investors.
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SS9173
Chuck Jensen is a good guy. I have conversed with him several times via email - all responses within 24 hours. I found all his responses to be sincere and forthright.
SS9173
From the S-4:
AS OF JUNE 1, 2005, BASED ON 31,810,897 SHARES OF BSD COMMON STOCK OUTSTANDING, A VOLUME-WEIGHTED 5-DAY AVERAGE CLOSING PRICE OF NEOMEDIA STOCK OF $0.563, AND THE SHARE EXCHANGE RATE OUTLINED IN THE MERGER AGREEMENT, BSD SHAREHOLDERS WOULD
RECEIVE 0.1243 SHARES OF NEOMEDIA STOCK FOR EACH SHARE OF BSD COMMON STOCK THAT THEY CURRENTLY HOLD. THIS CALCULATION IS GIVEN FOR REFERENCE ONLY. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT BSD SHAREHOLDERS WILL NOT KNOW THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF SHARES THEY WILL RECEIVE UNTIL THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE MERGER. BSD
SHAREHOLDERS WHO WISH TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE NUMBER OF SHARES THEY WILL RECEIVE IN THE MERGER CAN CALL TOLL-FREE (877) 813-2419.
Maybe it is stated elsewhere but I don't see that the number of shares is fixed. I will keep looking.
SS9173
Saskwatch, I hope you're right, but I am just having trouble seeing this S-4 amendment as a positive development.
Based on the various comparisons of the June 6 vs June 20 S-4 amendments, it appears this S-4 amendment is just a minor clarification on the one previously submitted.
I wish I could conclude something different, but IMHO the quiet period has to continue until the SEC officially approves the merger. It would appear that could be anytime between now and July 31.
So if I am correct it would seem that the timing of this S-4 amendment and tomorrow's court hearing is only coincidental.
Neom's implementation timelines seem to be pushing to the right for whatever reason, and I wouldn't be surprised to see another delay for the Virgin settlement as well.
I remain confident that in the long term everything will work out and Neom will be successful. So I keep telling myself "Patience", "Patience", "Patience" . . .
Probably, more than anything, this posting is just trying to mentally prepare me for another day of no resolution / no agreement.
So, if we don't reach a settlement tomorrow, I won't feel disappointed. And, if you and Wooger are right, I will sing your praises while dancing for joy.
Ok...I feel better now that I got that off my chest and my mental condition is set.
SS9173
Woogerbear and Schep, Good idea! I did it this morning.
http://www.blogmaverick.com/entry/1234000217029301/
Logging off now for the rest of the day...Happy Father's Day everyone.
SS9173
DD The Ubiquitous Office: A Nomadic Search and Access Solution
http://mobile.kaywa.com/files/nomadic_computing.pdf
SS9173
DD My cellphone, My Life - blog maverick - The Mark Cuban Weblog
http://www.blogmaverick.com/entry/1234000217029301/
About Mark Cuban http://www.nba.com/mavericks/news/cuban_bio000329.html
He needs to learn about Neomedia. So I educated him by commenting on his blog this evening.
SS9173
DD Invariant Aspects of M-Commerce Environments
From the Information Technology Research Institute - Finland
Very Comprehensive Powerpoint Presentation - 95 Pages
http://www2.cs.ucy.ac.cy/mdm05/mdm05-keynote2.pdf
SS9173
DD "Collisions between Industries" and the Evolution of the Mobile Internet in Japan
Another research paper by Jeffrey L. Funk - Hitotsubashi University - Tokyo, Japan
This paper was presented at the Fourth Annual Mobility Conference in Hong Kong on June 1 and 2, 2005
http://www.iir.hit-u.ac.jp/file/WP05-11funk.pdf
SS9173
DD Bankinter, Vodafone Spain Sign Mobile Banking Deal
http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=5633
26/01/2005 by John Tilak
Spanish bank Bankinter and mobile operator Vodafone Spain have announced an agreement for the development of banking products and services through mobile devices. Bankinter and Vodafone are working together to achieve total mobility of banking services. The agreement aims to encourage the use of this channel within the financial and investment sectors among customers of both companies.
The companies have launched the Vodafone Broker service on the BlackBerry 7100v and 7230 terminals, with the Bankinter broker application pre-installed. Bankinter and Vodafone customers can perform banking operations on the electronic stock market and at more than 20 international stock markets in real time. The service does not involve additional costs for the customer.
Vodafone Spain and Bankinter have conducted a pilot using the Datamatrix system, through which customers can obtain tickets to a show via their mobile which is received as a two-dimensional barcode that can be read by a scanner.
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SS9173
DD Mobile Payment Forum - Enabling the Future of Mobile Commerce
http://www.mobilepaymentforum.org/aboutus.htm
The Mobile Payment Forum is a global, cross-industry organization launched in November 2001 to create a framework for the deployment of simple, secure and interoperable m-payments. The Forum provides an open, flexible and trusted environment in which member organizations can clarify the opportunities and address the complex challenges facing the industry.
Membership in the Forum includes organizations involved in facilitating mobile payments: key financial institutions, payment card companies, telecommunications operators, wireless-device manufacturers, merchants, content providers and software and hardware developers and vendors.
Our mission is to leverage the expertise of key participants in the mobile communications and financial industries to create a foundation for standardized technology and functionality for mobile payments, thereby addressing consumer and merchant needs for simple, secure, and interoperable m-payment choices. In accomplishing this, we intend to:
- Accelerate the global market for m-payments
- Simplify the consumer payment experience
- Collaborate on future directions for mobile commerce
Members: http://www.mobilepaymentforum.org/members.htm
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SS9173
DD Japan's Taito Corporation rewards mobile shopping with loyalty points and launches WASP using Payments Plus (TM) by Valista
http://www.valista.com/downloads/cases/Taito_2pCase.pdf
SS9173
DD Payments Plus (TM) by Valista powers electronic and mobile commerce for NTT DoCoMo in Japan
http://www.valista.com/downloads/cases/DoCoMo_2pCase.pdf
SS9173
DD WirelessWatchJapan.com Website
(A testimony to the mobile transformation of Japan - It's only a matter of time for the rest of the world to catch up and Neom's intellectual property to be a part of it)
http://www.wirelesswatchjapan.com/
SS9173
DD Key Technological Trajectories and the Expansion of Mobile Internet Applications
by Jeffrey L. Funk
Professor, Hitotsubashi University - Tokyo, Japan
(Not sure when published and if this has been posted before...It is a very in-depth pdf research paper)
http://www.iir.hit-u.ac.jp/file/FUNK%20INFO%20paper.pdf
SS9173
DD i-mode Business Strategy - The Blog & Newsletter of i-mode Content Forum
http://www.imodestrategy.com/2004/09/_040912_weekly_.html
1. i-mode customers take QUICPay for a test drive
JCB, Japan’s largest credit card issuer, will start a QUICPay® contactless payment system trial project in November for taxi passengers with mobile phones compatible with NTT DoCoMo's i-mode® FeliCa® mobile wallet service. The 3G FOMA® F900iC handsets which were launched in June 2004 are i-mode smart-card handsets.
About 30 of the Kanachu taxi company's cabs will be equipped with contactless readers. Part of the customer's existing credit limit is assigned to a contactless IC chip, embedded in the customer's mobile wallet service phone. The QUICPay amount is billed to the customer's existing credit card just like any other credit card purchase.
"Everybody knows that people are busy in the Tokyo metro area. That's where the convenience and speed of QUICPay can make a big difference. QUICPay is signature-free and stress-free - just tap and go," said Mr. Go Masaki, Assistant Vice President of JCB's Strategic Market Development Department. "Not only is payment more convenient for the customer, but the time saved frees the cab driver to serve the next fare even faster than before."
The trial will run for two months. JCB will use the feedback provided by riders and drivers at the end of the trial in preparation for the full-scale release of the QUICPay system in the spring of 2005.
For more information:
-read this QUICPay report on 3G UK July 2004
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2. History corner: How DoPa connected with the internet to bring i-mode
DoPa was the DoCoMo packet transmission service which was launched in 1997 following intensive R&D efforts to differentiate DoComo from its competitors. DoPa enabled customers to send and receive data in packets, The service was charged on the basis of the volume of the packet data not on connect time.
The launch was followed shortly after by another initiative known as the "ten yen mail service" which allowed subscribers to send an email of up to 1000 characters through their mobile phone for just 10 yen.
Although the DoPa service met with reasonable success DoCoMo found itself still under threat from its competitors while at the same time finding its PDC (2G) network becoming increasingly overloaded through voice demand.
Almost exactly 2 years after the launch on DoPa, thanks to the pioneering efforts of the now famous trio of Keiji Enoki, Natsuno Takeshi and Matsunage Mari, Docomo created and launched i-mode, the first instantly accessible always on mobile internet service in the world.
For more information:
! it's hard to find much history about this, please let me know if you have references or knowledge of the connection between DoPa and the development of i-mode.
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3. Quick Response bar code gets off to a slow start
The Quick Response bar code is now taking off in Japan as an effective advertising and mobile boosting feature.
The Asahi Tribune recently reported (September 6, 2004) how "cellphones trace bar-coded veggies from farm to shelf"… "it's all done by taking a cellphone camera snapshot of a revolutionary new bar code, called a Quick Response (QR) bar code. Measuring about 2 centimeters square, the matrix-type super-code can store up to 100 times more information than a conventional bar code."
In fact this revolutionary new barcode was developed and released in 1994 by the Nippondenso Company. While conventional bar codes are capable of storing a maximum of approximately 20 digits, QR Code is capable of handling several dozen to several hundred times more information and using a print area about one tenth the size of a barcode with the same amount of data.
QR Code is capable of handling all types of data, such as numeric and alphabetic characters, Kanji, Kana, Hiragana, symbols, binary, and control codes. IT can be read from any orientation and has error correction capability. Data can be restored even if the symbol is partially dirty or damaged (it can tolerate up to about 30% damage).
Although the QR code is a JIS Standard and an ISO standard, it is a proprietary standard of Denso Wave (a division of Denso Corporation at the time) and is only used in Japan. There is in fact a competing standard 2D encoding format in the public domain, the Data Matrix format (see http://www.rvsi.com/acuitycimatrix/index.htm for more information). Data Matrix is supported by an ISO standard, ISO/IEC16022, and a US military specification, MIL-STD-130L. However, this public domain format is not seen in Japan whereas the QR code is rapidly growing in usage and familiarity.
In England Bango.net have released their own Bango Spot "based on research conducted at the University of Cambridge". Each Bango Spot holds a numeric identifier. Reader software in the handset extracts this number, and sends it to the Bango servers, where it is mapped to content. This content is then displayed in the phone's browser.
Driving the growth is the rapid acceptance of camera phones, and the ongoing search for applications that can make use of a camera that's also a connected device. The first and most popular application is to snap picture of a QR code and then have the phone process the picture and load a relevant mobile internet site.
An early application using camera phones was to have the QR code printed on business cards and then read by camera phones as an alternative to fiddling with Bluetooth and infrared data exchange between phones or PDA-devices. Because this is a simple and flawless procedure, and because the data content of the QR code is much richer, it is becoming the preferred method of electronic business card capture.
- see this quirky Designer Barcode business.
QR codes can be displayed on a cellular phone screen for the purpose of ticketless concert entry or cashless vending machine purchases (such as Coca Cola Japan's "Cmode" service, which enables mobile phones to be used to purchase soft drinks and other items from vending machines).
For more information:
- see Denso Wave's website about QR Code
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4. QR code to co-exist with RFID in new applications
There are essentially two ways of utilizing QR codes. The first is to print a QR code in a publication such as a newspaper, magazine or on a poster, which can be read by a user's camera phone and which then directs the user's phone browser directly to the particular mobile Internet site.
The other method is to display QR codes embedded with ticketing or similar information on the mobile screen, which can then be parsed by a reader to validate entry to events or as a coupon for making payments at a point of sale such as a cash register.
In some magazine ads QR codes the point the user toward a mobile campaign site. Also, in some product catalogues and free newspapers, each product appears along with a corresponding QR code, enabling users to quickly view product information on their mobiles.
There are also increasing cases of QR codes being used in outdoor advertising, such as posters. In these instances, the codes are meant to readable by mobile phones, but they also include various creative elements.
The next application of QR codes is for transactional services. All Nippon Airways (ANA) and am/pm Japan are distributing e-tickets/coupons and membership cards by using QR codes and FeliCa to direct customers to their outlets and Websites, and attract them with the convenience of mobile payments.
Mail catalogue companies make extensive use of QR codes to drive customers to their mobile websites and particular products through a simple input of a QR photo.
In the case of NTT DoCoMo's "Do Commerce" service, users can take a QR code that contains a product's purchase information and pass it before a reader at a convenience store for identification purposes, then make payment at the convenience store as well. NTT DoCoMo also provides a similar service whereby customers can pay their mobile phone bills paperlessly at convenience stores by showing a QR code on the invoice at the cash register and making payment at the point of sale.
QR codes are likely to see increased usage in the future as way of bridging the mobile Internet and actual physical purchase environments such as stores.
Barcodes have a new technology alternative in the form of RFID, however while some commentators see RFID challenging barcodes in the near future it’s more likely that they will remain complementary technologies. In general RFID tags are also more costly and would still require some visual information to accompany them to allow users to identify what and where they are.
However on the other hand there are now RFIDs in posters and of course the DoCoMo Felica handsets can read RFID signals as well as photograph QR codes.
Nevertheless, although RFIDS are rapidly becoming equally as convenient as barcodes to access through cell phones, QR codes and RFID will each find a place in connecting new services with mobile subscribers.
For more information:
- see this article by Scanbuy who offer "optical intelligence".
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ODD SPOT: Hooked on QR - fish tell their stories while being consumed
DoCoMo Sentsu plans to undertake a QR barcode project in collaboration with a Fisheries Agency so that on-the-spot information, such as the names of the fishermen, the cooperatives they belong to, and where and when the fishery operations were conducted, are transmitted from fishing boats via satellites and stored and a specific QR code printed for the catch on certificates issued by the fishermen's cooperatives.
These certificates will be attached to fish at the time of their shipment.
When customers being served the fish at restaurants are shown the certificates, they will be able to pick up the information on their cell phones from the cooperative's web site, and make inquiries if necessary. In this way they'll be able to tell the fish exactly how it died!
Another QR project is bar coding bananas and that is also in a well ripened state and being rolled out to supermarkets in selected regions.
For more information:
- see this report by the Washington Fish Growers Association
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SS9173
DD Camera Phones Market Study - Published Jan 2004
http://www.igigroup.com/st/pages/cameraphones.html
Overview
Sharp and J-Phone introduced the first camera-phone (J-SH04) in November 2000. Today (January 2004) about 60% percent of mobile phones in Japan are camera phones and we expect that in 2005 the market penetration will almost reach 100%, i.e. almost all mobile phones in Japan will be camera phones. Top range models have 2 Megapixel cameras and autofocus and represent disruptive innovation for the imaging industry.
The present report describes Japan's market for camera phones and the Japanese camera phone industry quantitatively and qualitatively in approx. 140 slides with more than 80 photographs.
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Table of Contents
1. Executive Summary
2. Camera phones: distruptive innovation for photography
The innovator's dilemma
Disruptive innovation, disruptive technologies
Consequences
Video
3. Camera phones - An overview
What are camera phones?
Short J-Phone shamail history
4A. User numbers and statistics, estimated carrier sales
Sha-mail, foto-mail and i-shot usage
Camera phone numbers for Japan's carriers (data for 2001-Dec 2003
DoCoMo's i-shot as the fourth mover
About 60% of cell phones are camera phones in Japan (total number and number by carrier, data for 2001-Dec 2003)
How many pictures do subscribers send?
How much money do carriers make? (estimated income of DoCoMo from transmission fees for images per month)
4B. Camera phone handset market in Japan
Camera handsets
Japan's market for mobile phones with camera: market size, and estimation until 2004
Market shares of camera phone market in Japan for individual camera phone manufacturers (for 2001 and 2002)
Mobile internet and camera handsets - trends towards the "sweet spot"
Trends of mobile phones in Japan: weight and volume data and analysis for the period 1990-2006 for 2G and 3G phones
Trends of battery standby time in Japan: 1990-2006 for 2G and 3G phones, data and analysis
JAVA
Typical camera phone characteristics: high-end compared to a typical low-end camera phone (data January 2004)
DoCoMo's 505i series characteristics: F505i, D505i, N505i, SO505i, SH505i, P505i (start of 505i series: June 2003
DoCoMo's 505iS series characteristics: F505iGPS, D505iS, N505iS, SO505iS, SH505iS, P505iS (start of 505iS series: Dec 2003
DoCoMo's FOMA 900 series characteristics: D900i, F900i, N900i, P900i, SH900i (start of FOMA 900i series: planned for Feb 2004
5A. Description of 3G Infobar Movie camera phone
Description and key characteristics
Photographs of the phone
The KDDI/AU design project
Sample picture taken by the phone
5B. Description of F505i camera phone
Description and key characteristics
Photographs of the phone
Sample picture taken by the phone
5C. Description of P505iS camera phone
Description and key characteristics
Photographs of the phone
5D. Description of N504iS camera phone
Description and key characteristics
Photographs of the phone
Sample picture taken by the phone
5E. Description of P2102 FOMA 3G video camera phone
Description and key characteristics
Photographs of the phone
Sample picture taken by the phone
5F. Selected other camera phones in Japan and sample photographs
The J-Phone J-D05 by Matsushita
Selected images by J-Phone sha-mail phones
Selected images by DoCoMo i-shot phones
Selected images by AU/KDDI phones
Images by TuKa T21 phone
6. Picture Mail and GPS Demonstration
Picture mail and GPS: description, analysis
EXAMPLE: Demonstration of Picture mail & GPS by AU/KDDI (model 5302CA)
EXAMPLE: KDDI/AU Infobar (Nishikigoi version)
7. Movie mail
Video/movie mail description
Screen images: J-Phone/SANYO Phone J-SA51
Overview of different mobile video systems in use in Japan
Nancy image compression format: characteristics and analysis
8. Technical aspects, description, trends, limitations and future scope Technical aspects
Trends and future
Limitations
9. Cameras enable data input to mobile phones via 2D barcode (QR code)
2D barcode (QR code)
Example: payment at a store with 2D barcode coupon
2D barcodes (Q codes) and camera phones
10. The camera phone industry structure and segmentation
Industry structure and segmentation
Services and opportunities
Example: sending images between networks - KDDI's team factory service
Shamail websites and business opportunities
J-Phones "@shamail album "
Example: Waku-Waku iPrint Service
Example: Photo-Album storage & printing
11. Printers
Printers for individual use
12. Photo finishing stations
Images and examples of fee operated public photofinishing stations
13. Camera phones: global expansion and trends
14. Competitive environment in Japan - the Carrier perspective: DoCoMo, AU/KDDI, J-Phone/Vodafone
Lively competition created the world's most advanced mobile communication landscape in Japan - schematic view of Japan's telecommunication carrier industry (updated Oct 2003)
Four groups of companies compete for 65 million wireless internet users in Japan
Three groups compete in Japan's mobile phone market: NTT-DoCoMo, KDDI (AU), and J-Phone: mobile phone subscriber numbers for individual carriers (data: 1998 - 2003)
Market shares (1998 - 2004)
Mobile internet subscriber numbers (imode, Jsky, EZweb, H, period 1999-2004)
Brief description of carriers
Comments
Historic development
15. Some characteristic differences between mobile communications industry in the "GSM-world" compared to Japan
characteristic differences (table)
Churn (prepaid, subscription) period: 1996-2001
ARPU: comparing DoCoMo and Vodafone Germany
DoCoMo's churn compared to competitors Vodafone (Japan) and KDDI/AU, and global Vodafone (data for 1996-2003)
ARPU for different European countries (both prepay and subscription shown) compared with Japan's ARPU (only subscription shown)
ARPU 1999-2003 (total ARPU and data ARPU for DoCoMo and competitors)
Japan versus GSM world and what it means for Camera phones
Japan versus GSM world - trends (tables)
16. Summary
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SS9173
DD Another Vodafone Top of the Line Model with Barcode Reading Capability
http://www.vodafone.jp/english/products/other/j_sh010/
It is also manufactured by Sharp
SS9173
DD Vodafone J-SH09 with Barcode Reading Capability
Presently available in Japan only; Phone is manufactured by Sharp
http://www.vodafone.jp/english/products/other/j_sh09/
Excerpt:
Barcode Reader
The barcode scanner is smart enough to read two barcode formats (JAN/QR codes). Record barcode information such as mobile phone numbers or mail. You can even record URLs for easy access to the Internet.
Separate call/communication charges will be applied for using the barcode to make calls or connect to websites.
QR code is a registered trademark of Denso Corporation.
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SS9173
JP, I agree. Just anxious for the Virgin settlement as well. But you are 100% right. Thanks,
SS9173
JP & Koko, Good find and Good news! Hope they can combine these additional patents with a Virgin settlement on June 21. Now that would be a great PR!!!
SS9173
DD Will That Be Cash, Credit, Or Cell? (Referenced in today's Pondering Primate Blog)
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_26/b3939071_mz011.htm
Finally, the technology is at hand to turn phones into virtual wallets
For years, techies and wireless phone companies have coveted a dream: turning the ubiquitous cell phone into a virtual wallet. In the late 1990s everyone from Nokia Corp. (NOK ) to Visa was plotting to roll out services in the U.S. that would let people use their cell phones to buy everything from soft drinks to cars. Startups such as 724 Solutions Inc. teamed with banks to let people check balances and transfer funds from a phone. But pokey technology and tepid demand snuffed out the market.
Now, so-called mobile commerce seems poised to make a lasting comeback. Services are already up and running in Japan, South Korea, Germany, and elsewhere. And starting next year, a wave of new services is expected to roll out in the U.S. -- some could be launched by wireless carriers, such as Sprint Corp., some by small technology outfits working with the phone companies and banks. One such company, C-SAM Inc., a tiny, privately owned software developer in Oakbrook Terrace, Ill., is expected to announce plans on June 20 to roll out a service early next year that will allow people to use their phones as credit cards. Says C-SAM CEO Sam Pitroda: "I believe the whole concept of money is going to change."
He may be right, but he and other evangelists of mobile commerce face formidable challenges in the U.S. Americans love to talk -- but haven't warmed to using cell phones for much else yet. They have legitimate concerns about security and how easy it will be to make a transaction. Moreover, retailers and banks will have to spend hundreds of millions to upgrade systems before the technology goes mainstream.
Still, analysts and wireless execs believe the time is ripe for mobile commerce. Cell phones have become one of the few items that many people -- nearly 2 billion worldwide -- rarely leave home without. Pitroda admits phone wallets won't interest everybody. But he argues the technology is much better than even a few years ago -- and if he and others get just a fraction of the wireless market, a big business awaits. "I see this really beginning to take off," says Christopher J. Bierbaum, head of Sprint's mobile commerce business.
As it develops, the market could get crowded. Wireless operators from Sprint to industry leader Cingular Wireless are seeking ways to boost revenues as the prices for their voice offerings flatten. The carriers are currently weighing whether to offer the service themselves, as NTT DoCoMo Inc. (DCM ) is doing in Japan, or to partner with a software provider or a bank. But some banks will want to go it alone and launch their own branded service. Even retailers could step into the fray.
The renewed interest has software vendors developing a rash of different technologies. Some require buyers to dial a phone number to authorize payment. C-SAM, on the other hand, lets users navigate through a cell phone menu. Pitroda, who is talking with Citibank (C ), Sprint (FON ), and others about licensing his technology, is shooting for ease of use. India's former telecom czar first aimed his technology at Indians who work in Dubai and wire money home. With his system, you simply click on an icon to start a money transfer or pay bills. At retailers, shoppers will use the phone to beam their card data to an electronic checkout system.
User-friendly technology will be the key to success. During trials last year in Japan, Visa International found that customers dismissed the technology because it was too much work to punch tiny phone buttons. "For U.S. consumers, it has to be simple to use," says Tom J. Manessis, Visa's head of emerging opportunities. "To click through six menus is not simple." It may be a few years before Americans are as comfortable with phone wallets as with leather ones, but the mobile commerce revolution finally seems to be coming.
By Roger O. Crockett in Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.
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SS9173
DD Intel Researchers Develop CMOS Radio Supporting All Flavors Of The 802.11 Wi-Fi Standard
http://www.intel.com/pressroom/archive/releases/20050617net.htm
KYOTO, Japan, June 17, 2005 -- Intel Corporation announced it has developed a prototype of an all-CMOS direct conversion dual-band radio transceiver capable of supporting every current Wi-Fi standard (802.11a, b and g), as well as the projected requirements of 802.11n. The system-in-a-package technology is a significant step toward enabling integrated CMOS radios that could provide improved wireless capabilities in future Intel platforms at a low cost.
The announcement, presented as part of a technical paper delivered at the Symposium on VLSI Technology in Kyoto, Japan, outlines the building blocks Intel created to implement the fully flexible, multimode radio in a standard CMOS process. A future extension to the Wi-Fi standard, 802.11n will more than double the wireless transfer speed compared to today's implementation.
"This system-in-a-package design uses more low-voltage circuitry than we've ever used in the past, which means we can integrate it and make it lower cost while operating at lower voltages and providing longer battery life," noted Krishnamurthy Soumyanath, director of Intel's Communications Circuits Research Lab. "The variable bandwidth of this solution extends capabilities beyond today's 20 MHz to 100 MHz, and is expected to support data rates higher than 100 megabits per second that should allow people to enjoy multiple high-quality video streams concurrently."
Today each device uses a customized radio to connect to a particular network -- for example, a wireless local area network or WLAN based on Wi-Fi technology. A different device might use a radio developed for a wireless wide area network or WWAN. In the next few years, Intel expects mobile devices will contain several different radios so they can utilize many different wireless communication networks. Intel's research points toward a time in the future when one device will use "smart" antenna systems and a reconfigurable CMOS radio on a single device making the radio more power efficient, smaller and lower cost. The goal being pursued is the ability to connect to any network, anytime, anywhere on any device.
One of the key achievements of this research is keeping the underlying manufacturing technology tied to CMOS -- the technology Intel uses to make all its microprocessors and other computer chips. By doing so, it keeps manufacturing costs low and the potential to produce this capability in high volume. The device in the research paper features a 1.4-volt design (very low power consumption compared to what is available in the marketplace today).
"By creating this capability in CMOS, Intel will have the option of integrating wireless capabilities into a wide variety of our future chips," Soumyanath said.
Paper Details
The device in the research paper integrates a 5GHz CMOS power amplifier that meets all the spectral purity and non-interference requirements from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), while frequency planning techniques minimize interference caused by the on-die amplifier. All these improvements result in better wireless performance. To achieve these results, Intel researchers developed a new calibration scheme for the transceiver to achieve high volume manufacturability. Separating receiver and transmitter effects has proven to be difficult in the past, but Intel's scheme is easy to implement and correctly separates the effects, improving yields and lowering the cost of these radios.
About the Symposium on VLSI Technology
The Symposium on VLSI Technology began in 1981 with the hope of offering the world's top technologists an opportunity to engage in an open exchange of ideas on what was quickly becoming a revolution in the world's industrial capability. Since then, the Symposium has been held annually and has grown to be one of the most prestigious technical conferences in the VLSI business. The Symposium on VLSI Technology has alternated each year between sites in US and Japan. In 1987, the first Symposium on VLSI Circuits was held. Its sponsors continue to be the IEEE Electron Devices Society and Solid-State Circuits Society, and the Japan Society of Applied Physics in cooperation with the Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers.
802.11 Standards for Wireless Technology
802.11 refers to a family of specifications developed by the IEEE for wireless LAN technology. 802.11 specifies an over-the-air interface between a wireless client and a base station or between two wireless clients.
802.11a - an extension to the 802.11 standard that applies to wireless LANs and provides up to 54 Mbps in the 5GHz band.
802.11b - an extension to the 802.11 standard that applies to wireless LANs and provides 11 Mbps transmission (with a fallback to 5.5, 2 and 1 Mbps) in the 2.4 GHz band.
802.11g - an extension to the 802.11 standard that applies to wireless LANs and provides 54 Mbps in the 2.4 GHz band.
802.11n - an extension to the 802.11 standard that in the future will increase the speed to more than 100 Mbit/s. As projected, 802.11n will also offer a better operating distance than current networks.
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, is also a leading manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com/pressroom.
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SS9173