THE DEVELOPMENT OF CELLPHONES IN JAPAN

The Development of Cellphones in Japan

The Development of Cellphones in Japan

Usage of cell phones in Japan started widely from about 1994. It was not until February 1999, however, when NTT DoCoMo introduced its i-mode of Internet access for mobile phones that use really took off (Kavoori 2006). The age of mobile phones on us, but it comes the problem that did not exist in an era when telephones were stationary devices. The company is now turning its attention to the issue of mobile phone etiquette, and especially for users who talk on their phones in the crowd, not caring about loved ones. Cell phone service in Japan started in 1979 with the invention of the car phone (Jain 2002). The modern mobile phone appeared in 1987. The real shift, however, occurred only in 1994, when regulatory reform allowed for cell phones to be purchased rather than rented. Thus, we can say that the cell phone phenomenon has developed much more slowly than in Japan, in places such as Europe and the United States, where cell phones became popular soon after the development of motor units, or in Hong Kong, where phones are actively looking for a status symbol.

Since 1994, however, the cost of cellular phones and service plans has declined, which led to a sharp increase in consumer base. Since 1996, handset sales have increased at a rate of 10 million a year. In 1999, when NTT DoCoMo introduced I-Mode, cell phone service, which allows users to browse the web and send e-mail, sales, soared even more.

Using I-Mode, you can get access to the web instantly without the need for a computer. There was no service as I-Mode in Europe or the United States at the time sold in Japan, and therefore attracted the attention of foreign press, which characterized him as a Japanese revolution (Glotz 2005). By February 2000, only one year after the service was introduced, the total number of mobile phone users reached 55.5 million, 4,200,000 of which I mode. And even after that the number of I-Mode users has increased at a rate of about 1 million a month, which exceeds 7 million by the end of May.

The beauty of i-mode, which allows you to view the content of any page on the Internet through a small liquid-crystal monitor telephone terminal itself. Even people who do not have computer skills can easily read Web pages, if they can operate the phone buttons. There are more than 6000 sites specifically designed for I-Mode phones with simple graphics and faster load times and navigation (Katz 2002). Some of the approximately 340 services offered through these sites online banking include news, airline and reservations, tickets for concerts, as well as restaurant reviews. I-mode has proved so popular that other local service providers are now scrambling to provide these services online. The number of mobile terminals, telephone currently in use has exceeded the number of standard telephone lines, which were 55,700,000 at the ...