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  dorpus, 19 Feb 2004 @ 4:19pm

  
  

  The bigger picture

  For many people on this forum who are too young to remember, widespread cell phone usage in Japan was something that happened only in the mid-1990s. Until then, the Japanese were far behind the USA; only the very wealthy could afford them, and they had to get special licenses. The Japanese used to argue that cell phones went against the grain of their "face-to-face" culture; that the USA's crime and social problems were rooted in technologies such as cell phones and the internet. The USA put pressure on the Japanese to deregulate their telecomm industry. The politically powerful state-owned phone company, NTT, refused to relent on land lines, but a compromise was forged by which cell phone companies were left up to private-sector companies. (NTT still has a monopoly on land-line telephones, which cost $800 to set up a line, and takes a few months.)
  
  Cell phones are popular now because most people are afraid of real computers. The notion of using the web to buy things, do research, is still alien to most Japanese. Their cell phones have an "i-mode" which amounts to a glorified touch-tone system, where you can order a few things that are advertised on billboards.
  
  
  
  

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    xman, 20 Feb 2004 @ 12:43am

    
    

    Re: The bigger picture

    The first bit is right, but the second is typical dorpus crap. i-mode is a rather better version of WAP and works extrememly well as a way of getting web content on to limited devices. Of course as the pwoer in the phone increases the need for it goes away as the ability to render HTML becomes easier. Cell phones are popular a) because they are much cheaper than land lines and easier to get and b) because they are small and easy to carry around. It is nothing to do with fear of computers at all.

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  dorpus, 19 Feb 2004 @ 4:20pm

  
  

  p.s.

  The federal government's commerce department deserves full credit for deregulating Japan's cell phone market. Decades of free market forces had no impact, despite what Mike might want to believe.
  

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  shin, 20 Feb 2004 @ 7:15am

  
  

  Mobile Phone in Japan

  Comment from Japan,That's point mobile in Japan is most exiting biz not only in the field of finance, new technology but also teenager's gadget and short-music download service (Truetone). To be amazed you can see everywhere people talking mobile Phone in the time of waiting or sitting. The scene like that be seen not only in Tokyo every city in Japan, Kyoto, Osakan, Hiroshima. It's almost infectious disease. Once you step Into the Starbucks, You'd feel leaving behind because beside coffee or tea on the tables there IS Mobile Phone to be prepared.(prepare what? ASAP get the phone) Don't mind lose a warret, do not forgottn Mobile Phone never in Japan.

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    dorpus, 20 Feb 2004 @ 7:57am

    
    

    Re: Mobile Phone in Japan

    Yup, teen girls are avid users of mobile phones, especially the Enjo Kosai types (teen girls who offer "subsidized relationships"). You've got lots of white star trekkie types panting after them. Americans are under the impression that Japanese are hard workers, but that stereotype is at least ten years outdated. Young people today just care about partying and dressing up, if you imagine the worst sluts you might meet at a community college here. U.S. graduate schools are full of Chinese and Indian students, but no Japanese.
    
    
    

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