Buried deep within Kin’s software is a provisioning file directory, which has uncovered a list of carriers who will potentially support Microsoft’s One and Two handsets. These are no guarantees that the carriers will actually be picking up the phones, only that they’re technically capable of running on these networks. It’s entirely possible these were…
Japan’s SoftBank in talks with Chinese Alibaba Group
Japan’s SoftBank is reportedly in talks with Chinese Alibaba Group, discussing ways how to expand e-commerce between the two countries. According to The Wall Street Journal, the idea is that Alibaba’s e-commerce unit, Taobao, would work with 41% SoftBank-owned Yahoo Japan Corp. to help small and medium-sized merchants to sell goods through each other’s platforms.…
SoftBank to grab a piece of bankrupt Willcom
We’ve already said that Japanese fourth largest mobile operator Willcom has filed for bankruptcy. As expected, SoftBank — aka former Vodafone Japan — is stepping in like a vulture to pick up assets it cares about. Actually, that’s a “single asset” called eXtended Global Platform (XGP) business, which will be spun off into a separate…
Up to 19 LTE networks to go live in 2010, 36 networks to be operational in 2012; list of who and where!
The GSA (Global Suppliers Association) is reporting that over the past 8 months there has been a near 100% increase in the number of operators around the world committing to the LTE standard. There are now 51 network commitments in 24 countries, an increase of 96% over the past 8 months. Not all is rosy…
Japan: NTT DoCoMo to kill their 2G network in March 2011, Softbank to do the same in March 2010
While the United States is still struggling to roll out 3G, Japan’s number one mobile operator NTT DoCoMo has said that they’re accelerating their plans to turn off their 2G network. What was supposed to take place during December 2012 has now been pushed forward to March 2011. For those of you counting, that’s only…
Brad Pitt and Sumo Champ Musashimaru Appear in SoftBank Commercial
Brad Pitt is at it again, appearing in yet another commercial for Japanese carrier SoftBank. In this commercial, Pitt plays a character doing everything he can to please sumo champ Musashimaru. I love it when his sandal breaks and Pitt comes to the rescue. Oh yeah, and I suppose there’s a cell phone in the…
Softbank Simulating Disease Spread Using GPS-Enabled Phones
The Japanese government has approved local service provider Softbank to conduct an experiment with schoolchildren involving GPS-enabled phones. Basically, select kiddies will be designated as “carriers”, and their transmission of the disease will be tracked based on GPS proximity to other students. The goal of the study is to track how diseases move, and see…
Japanese university using free iPhones to track students
While the American educational system continues to falter, Japanese educators are pushing for high-tech educational tools. A university in Japan is using the popularity of the iPhone to help keep track of their faculty and student body. About 550 students and staff at Japan’s Aoyama Gakuin University will be getting free iPhones through SoftBank as…
Sharp Announces Flip with 10 Megapixel Camera
Japanese carrier Softbank is showing off a lot of new phones at their summer show, but the most eye-catching so far is the Sharp Aquos Shot 933SH featuring a beeft 10 megapixel camera with LED flash and smile detection. It’s not quite 12 megapixels, but damn is it close. Besides, most folks would be willing to…
Four Japanese carriers to invest $10 billion in their networks during the next five years
Four Japanese mobile operators will spend 1 trillion yen ($10 billion) during the next five years to build a next-gen mobile network with faster Internet speeds. According to Nikkei – NTT DoCoMo, KDDI, Softbank and Emobile will apply to the government for licenses for the new standard (LTE?) by May 7. DoCoMo plans to launch…