KDDI Research released a report (Japanese-language; PDF download here) I authored on The State of TV in America (English abstract). This is part 1 of 2, and focuses on the traditional broadcast TV and cable industries, and the advent of “three screen viewing”, to paraphrase Nielsen’s term. Part 2 looks forward, and will focus further on multi-device viewing, and innovations in the video viewing and distribution fields.
After much rumor on BGR and others, T-Mobile USA unveiled its Even More and Even More Plus cellular plans. Even More is essentially all you can eat voice and texting at $59.99. Having walked through the purchase process, it looks like they’re throwing in free mobile data (for a term TBD) and free shipping too.
The wrinkle with Even More Plus is that the handset subsidy is now paid back on an installment plan, as has been broadly adopted in the Japanese market. There, it had the effect of lowering ARPU, dramatically lowering churn, and improving carrier operating margins. The drop in churn is shown below. A churn rate of 1% means that 12% of customers turn over per year. Note how all operators are at or below 1%, or well below even Verizon Wireless, which has the lowest churn among the US national operators.
Japan’s Q4-2008 ends in March 2009. Softbank instituted such plans in fall 2006 and NTT DoCoMo followed in fall 2007 following guidance from MIC, Japan’s regulatory agency. KDDI followed the following year.
Quick post on a solar powered phone from Sharp, available through KDDI AU and Softbank Mobile in Japan, meaning there are both CDMA and UMTS versions. (Coverage by Wireless Watch Japan of a review by Nikkei Tech-On.)
I got to see this phone (not use it, though) during a trip to Japan last month. I do wonder how much time a cellphone (at least one in urban Tokyo) spends directly in sunlight, unless you place it near a window. Nonetheless, snazzy; feel-good; takes advantage of Sharp’s capability to integrate components from its business units; and likely apt for overseas markets.
I’m happy to announced that I am working with the investment team at Presidio STX, the venture investment arm of Sumitomo Corporation, one of Japan’s oldest trading firms.
