1) Case Study :GAKUSEIENGOKAI / "DoCoMo Coin "as Novelty: Using Mobile to Increase the Numbers of Campaign Applicants
2) Industry Report: Mobile Advertising to Reach 77.5 Billion Yen in 2009
3) Mobile Research:What Consumers Look For When Purchasing a Mobile Phone
4) Carrier Trend:Mobile Marketing Conference 2005
5) Japan Cellular Subscriber Data

1)Case Study : GAKUSEIENGOKAI / "DoCoMo Coin" as Novelty using Mobile to Increase the Numbers of Campaign Applicants

GAKUSEI ENGOKAI CO., LTD. that helps students search for employment is using numerous channels to disseminate classified ads. Other than publishing in the traditional weekly magazine an, the association works in conjunction with three mobile carriers to operate an official site “Mobile an”; it also produces a PC website “Web an” and has placed a free paper in train stations throughout Tokyo, Osaka and Kyushu.

 

From April 7 until May 31, the same association produced a Spring present campaign targeting new university students. The association runs this campaign every year in order to promote increased awareness of its mobile site. By accessing either Web an or Mobile an and applying via the campaign page, people can enter a drawing to win a prize. The campaign aims to increase awareness of the classified site and encourage people who are searching for employment-related classified ads to make use of it.

 

In this campaign, one of the premium prizes was prepared by NTT DoCoMo in the form of DoCoMo Coin, the digital novelty that can be applied toward paying off mobile phone charges for voice and data. Rather than using the premium prize on the PC site, the decision was taken to offer it exclusively on the mobile site. Commenting on the reason for this, a spokesman for the Student Assistance Association stated that the Association wanted to make extensive use of DoCoMo Coin because of the young target user group and the fact that mobile phones are so user friendly. However, because recent classified ads have begun to incorporate a lot of graphics such as pictures of the work place and maps, packet data charges to users have increased. Therefore, DoCoMo Coin was used as a means of enabling them to recover some of those packet fees.

 

It is evident that the use of DoCoMo Coin resulted in an increased number of campaign applicants, which topped the number of respondents to the previous campaign, up by about 200%. The Association spokesman stated that from now on, the Association wants to run promotions that can offer DoCoMo Coin. The ultimate goal would be if DoCoMo Coin could be awarded to all site users. According to users, not only is DoCoMo Coin an extremely useful novelty, but additionally because NTT DoCoMo is offering the novelty, people trust the service. And because companies can implement DoCoMo Coin without incurring any postal fees or bearing any other personal information management costs, usage of DoCoMo Coin in future campaigns is anticipated to grow even more.
Internet-based fortune telling services that target young females are extremely popular. In general, such sites have the power to draw an increasing number of accesses and can be thought of as "killer content" Content Provider Media Kobo' i-mode site is one such site. Having experienced great success with a PC Internet site produced by a popular fortune teller known for his expertise, Media Kobo launched a mobile site in December 2004. Amid the launch preparations, Nihon Television interviewed Media Kobo's fortune teller on its TV program, "Super Television" Recognizing this as an opportunity to give the mobile site exposure, Mobile Kobo planned a promotion that would link the television program and the mobile site. Their aim was to use this opportunity of being picked up by the mass media to boost their site's membership numbers. Since the fortune teller's expertise was introduced during the television program, Media Kobo also set up a special portion of the mobile site dedicated to "Lucky Fun Spots(Amusement Park Special)" that would exploit this linkage to the TV program.

 

On February 21, the night that the television program was aired, Media Kobo sent out a "push" advertisement on the "Message Free" channel which promoted both the television program and the mobile site along with a gift campaign. "Message Free" is an opt-in advertisement service offered by NTT DoCoMo and is delivered free of packet data charges to the user. As of April 2005, the number of users who have signed up to receive information for free via this service has surpassed 5.5 million. This kind of promotion can be fine tuned and targeted by segment, such as gender, age and residential area. In this case, this nationwide promotion targeted women in their 20s to 30s who were particularly interested in fortune telling. Users were eligible to enter a drawing, with the prize winner getting the chance to meet the fortune teller in person and have their fortune told. In order to enter the drawing, users had to sign up at the site. The television program and Message Free channel served as effective mechanisms for driving users to the site.

 

Immediately after Message Free was sent out, accesses to the site showed a dramatic increase. Afterwards, when the site was introduced on the television program, once again, the number of accesses jumped. According to a Media Kobo spokesperson, "Being able to access the site on one's mobile phone while watching television produces huge results." The results testify to the extreme synergy that exists between television and mobile. "This was the first time that a promotion linking television and mobile was tested. We were able to get a reaction from people who previously were not users, making this a big success."

2)Industry Report:
Mobile Advertising to Reach 77.5 Billion Yen in 2009/Dentsu Research Institute Announces Estimates for 2005-2009 Internet Advertising Revenues

According to results published in a July 20 report by Dentsu Research Institute on estimated internet advertising revenues 2005 ? 2009, total internet ad sales for 2009 are expected to reach 566 billion yen. This represents a 300% increase for the five-year period after 2005, of which mobile advertising revenues are expected to comprise 77.5 billion yen.

 

One of the major factors behind this enormous growth in internet ad revenues is the shift from past methods for charging for PC internet connectivity via usage volume to a flat rate, unlimited usage system. This has led to a rapid increase in the frequency and volume of internet usage. Meanwhile, the shift to flat rate packet charging for 3G mobile phones will produce a steady increase in take-up as well as an increased frequency of mobile internet browsing. This is expected to drive the growth of mobile advertising. With the scheduled launch in 2006 of 3.5G mobile phones, devices will more easily be able to display high volumes of rich advertising such as motion video, and while there are a number of unknowns regarding pricing plans for users, this is expected to be a factor in increasing mobile advertising rates.

 

Other factors include the loading of FeliCa (contactless digital cash chips) in mobile phones launched in 2004 by NTT DoCoMo and followed by the announced introduction by KDDI scheduled for Fall 2005. In combination with this, shops and online stores will be making efforts to promote purchases using FeliCa via mobile email advertising, and with the implementation of mobile Edy and Suica cards at actual shops, there is expected to be an increase in mobile search-related advertising.

 

Furthermore, with the scheduled launch of digital broadcasting (single segment) business to mobile phones in Spring 2006, a number of factors are likely to cause a jump in advertising rates around 2008, including related advertising, the availability of compatible handsets and the take up of the service.

 

With the emergence of such new markets, the availability of enhanced handsets and richer, more convenient services will be felt by users beginning around 2007 and will drive advertising growth. This is expected to produce a mobile advertising market in 2009 worth 77.5 billion yen and comprising 10-15% of the market as a whole.

3) Mobile Research:What Consumers Look For When Purchasing a Mobile Phone

In Japan today, a wide variety marketing surveys are conducted directly from participant's mobile phones. These surveys can prove extremely valuable in collecting otherwise inaccessible information about new consumer markets. The survey featured below focuses on the frequency with which i-mode users visit mobile Internet websites.

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Result of 176th Survey April 18 - April 25, 2005
Respondents: 11,901 i-mode users
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The following is a survey conducted to study the download patterns of mobile game users. It was conducted by the Internet-based research service INFO PLANT Co., LTD (Head office: Tokyo, Japan; Masaki OTANI, President). Survey data was collected via the surveys of subscribers to the NTT DoCoMo network, based on valid responses from 9,865 people during a one-week period from January 31- February 7, 2005. InfoPlant aims to expand the scope of research conducted using mobile phones.
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<Survey Results Overview>
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54.9% of Respondents Have FOMA phones, More than 70% are in teens

The majority of users (41.2%) said they were using FOMA 900i series, followed by the FOMA 901i series (11.6%), and the FOMA 700i series (2.1%) adding up to 54.9% or more than half of the users having relatively new handsets. In addition, the proportion of users with phones other than FOMA handsets were as follows: 505i series (15.1%), 251i ? 253i series (7.9%), and the 506i series (6.1%). There were no major differences according to gender. However, looked at by age and gender, the majority of FOMA users were from younger age groups, notably over 70% of males and females with FOMA handsets were in their teens (Table 1).

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23.8% Intend to Change Their Phone within Three Months

With regards to plans to change phones within three months, 5.2% said they would definitely buy a new phone, while 18.6% said they would probably buy a new phone. 23.8% of respondents said they intended to buy a new phone. On the other side, 18.5% said they had no plans to buy a new phone, while 43.8% said they definitely would not buy a new phone. There were no notable differences between genders. Looked at by gender and age, the portion of respondents saying they intended to buy a new phone was greatest among men 50 and over, surpassing 30% (Table 2.1).

The types of phones being used by those most interested in buying a new handset were older models, such as the 209i ? 213i series, the 251i ? 253i series, the 501 ? 503i series, and the 504i series (Table 2.2).

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What Customers Look for When Buying Mobile Phones: Males favor large, high-quality displays, while females look at design and color

When asked what they look for when buying a new mobile phone, the majority of males favored large, high-quality displays (48.8%), followed by design and color (44.8%), interface (38.6%), handset price (38.4%), and same manufacturer as current model (36.3%).

In the case of females, the majority favored design and color (62.4%), followed by large, high-quality display (43.1%), handset price (42.9%), same manufacturer as current model (34.2%), and number of mobile camera pixels (30%).

Looked at by gender and age, the majority of those favoring design and color were from the younger age groups, while the majority of those favoring models with the same manufacturer as the current phone were in the higher age groups. In addition, the majority of males and females favoring higher pixel mobile cameras were in their teens, while the majority focusing on an easy interface were women 50 and over (Table 3.1).

In terms of handset types, very few of those with FOMA 901i series phones were concerned about price. In addition, there were a number of FOMA users among those who favored design and color (Table 3.2).

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<Survey Description>
Questions:
1)Please select the type of handset you currently own.(Select 1)
2)Will you buy a new handset within the next three months? (Select 1)
3)Please select the three points you look for when buying a new mobile phone.

Survey method: Open Survey, i-mode Tokusuru menu
Survey period: April 18 ? April 25, 2005 (1 week)
Valid responses: 11,901
Rate of valid response by gender: male 33.0%, female 67.0%
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The Tokusuru Menu is an original service developed by D2C, accessible by selecting item no. 4 from the i-menu of NTT DoCoMo's i-mode service portal. It carries beneficial information such as campaign information. For more information, please contact D2 Communications at press@d2c.co.jp
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Q1) Please select the type of handset you currently own.(Select 1)

<Table1>(By Gender/Age)

 

Q2)Will you buy a new handset within the next three months? (Select 1)

 

<Table 2-1>(By Gender/Age)

 

 <Table 2-2>(By currently owned handset type)

 

Q3): Please select the three points you look for when buying a new mobile phone.

<Table3-1>(By Gender/Age)

 

** Questions and Interviews for this survey**********
INFO PLANT CO., LTD.
Email:info@info-plant.com
TEL :+81-3-3367-1967, FAX :+81-3-3367-1961
**********************************************************

4)Carrier Trend:Mobile Marketing Conference 2005 - How Mobile Will Transform Our Future Lifestyle

Mobile Marketing Conference was composed of speeches, seminars and exhibitions around mobile marketing. This is the second time the conference has been held since 2004.

 

This time around, the theme of the event was the future impact of mobile on our lifestyle, with presentations made by industry leaders in sectors ranging from marketing to commerce. The main seminar featured a panel discussion with NTT DoCoMo's Multimedia Service Director Takeshi Natsuno, Rakuten’s President Mr. Mikitani, and bitWallet’s President Mr. Kawai. Natsuno spoke about the mobile wallet and touched upon the various ways in which it will add convenience to users’ lives. He predicted that the number of mobile wallet handsets for this financial year would break 10 million. Mr. Mikitani talked about how the immediacy of mobiles enables people to shop via their mobile during gaps in their schedules. In this way, he commented that “mobile has created time” and added that mobile sales make up 7% of Rakuten’s total sales. He cited a goal of 15% by the end of the year.

 

In the second segment of the conference, there was a panel discussion featuring D2 Communication’s President Fujita and Mandam's Marketing Director Uchida. The start included a video seminar shown by JAM JAPAN Marketing's Hisami Oshiba, which featured the latest trends from the U.S. market in cross-media and buzz marketing. Next, Mr. Uchida presented a case study of the linkage between mobile and real marketing in the Shibuya shopping district. In the following presentation, Mr. Fujita focused on the mobile as an interactive mass media, which lies within reach 24 hours a day, citing that many people use their mobile while watching television. He also added that in the future there will be even greater importance attached to cross-media and mixed media campaigns that employ mobile in combination with other media. Finally, he noted that “mobile is a medium that appeals to the emotions, and it has the power to penetrate the lives of consumers.”

 

The last section of the conference was dedicated to the impact of mobile FeliCa on daily life and included a panel discussion featuring NTT DoCoMo’s Multimedia Services’ Hirano, Mr. Uchida from ANA’s Customer Marketing Division, and Mr. Kaneko from FeliCa Network’s Planning Department. Mr. Hirano spoke about the mobile wallet as a very important marketing tool for businesses. He also explained the reasons behind NTT DoCoMo’s entry into the credit business, citing not only the importance of guaranteeing revenue from sources other than communication fees but also the goal of expanding the number of shops where the mobile wallet can be used. He also showed great enthusiasm for the growing market for micropayment settlements. Uchida also talked about progress in collaboration between companies to promote the use of mobile wallets since it is difficult for them to do everything by themselves. He predicted that mobile wallets would become increasingly popular in combination with corporations.

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