On Sunday, March 18, 2007, about 100 transportation companies in the Tokyo region switched to the near-field electronic money and payment system PASMO. Electronic money is a new battle field which JR-East pioneered with SUICA. Seven & I is still to throw it’s weight into the battle – read about today’s status of the electronic money marketplace in our “Mobile Payment and Keitai Credit” report.
A new multi-billion dollar power? Here is the character for PASMO: with an antenna on the hat, a pocket on the chest to store PASMO away, and wheels on the shoes, and in cherry-blossom pink… Does this cherry-blossom-pink guy look like he represents a new US$ multi-billion economic power?
PASMO – near field smart card for fare payment in Tokyo region – started Sunday, March 18, 2007 and exceeded all expectations
Disneychannel places advertisements with huge QR-code on Tokyo’s roofs. People passing by point their mobile phones at Mickey’s QR-code, and the mobile phone takes them to Disneychannel’s mobile site.
QR codes were developed in the 1990s by Toyota affiliate Denso-Wave to manage car parts – today they are by far the best way to link mobile phones to almost anything. In many applications QR codes are cheaper, easier, more flexible and more secure than RFID and NFC.
QR codes were developed in the 1990s to manage car parts – today they are by far the best way to link mobile phones to almost anything. In many applications QR codes are cheaper, easier, more flexible and more secure than RFID and NFC.
The European Central Bank (based in Frankfurt) manages the EURO, is one of the world’s most important central banks, and uses QR-codes to link traditional PC-webpages to mobile pages.
Annual Nikkei Marketing Journal (NMJ) ranking list of most successful products
NFC prepaid fare cards ranked near the top of most popular products for 2006
Every year Nikkei Marketing Journal publishes a ranking list of the most successful products of the past year in the form Sumo wrestling results are traditionally displayed: there is a Western side and an Eastern side, winners at the top are displayed in much larger print than also rans at the bottom as in Sumo rankings.
IC tickets are the “Ooseki” (second place) winners on the Eastern side of the Sumo ranking of hit products for 2006.
On March 18, 2007, more than 100 transportation companies of the Tokyo region including 25 train operators which serve a population of around 30 million will introduce PASMO IC-Tickets. Introduction of PASMO will increase market share for IC-tickets and ecash in Japan – and globally.
On March 18, 2007, more than 100 transportation companies (26 railway companies and 75 bus companies) – moving 30 million people of the Tokyo region – will switch to the IC card ticketing and e-cash system named “PASMO”. PASMO will interoperate and partially compete with SUICA.
Preparations go back more than 20 years, when Japan’s national railways started research on IC cards for ticketing. SUICA IC-card tickets were introduced commercially in November 2001 at 424 JR-EAST rail stations in the Tokyo region.
Tokyo’s PASMO combined with SUICA is likely to develop into one of the world’s biggest electronic payment and e-cash systems.
PASMO – near field smart card for fare payment in Tokyo region – started Sunday, March 18, 2007 and exceeded all expectations
FeliCa mobile payment wallet phones at the centre of attention
by Gerhard Fasol
Wireless, mobile phone industry trends years before they reach outside Japan
Every year the Wireless Japan sets global trends in wireless communications and mobile phones. Mobile phone industry professionals cannot afford to miss this trend setting show. It is here that Japanese carriers and handset makers introduce their latest products and show design studies and concept phones which set industry trends for the next months and years.
There were some surprises: In recent Wireless-Japan shows usually the KDDI/AU-design project prototypes were at the center of attention – this year I could not find any. For example, at Wireless-Japan-2002, KDDI/AU showed “Infobar” prototypes a full 16 months before market introduction. Did KDDI/AU decide to keep future design-project releases secret until they hit the market? Could well be so, given Japan’s increasingly ferocious mobile phone competition. Another surprise was Vodafone’s absence – Vodafone in recent years used to have the biggest show.
On the other hand this time most handset makers showed impressive concept phones, Matsushita/Panasonic under the heading “Beyond 3G”. The image shows NEC’s concept design study of a flexible multimedia phone: this phone has two screens which can be bent together, and used jointly as a larger screen.
Wireless Japan 2004 Highlights: “Beyond 3G”
Beyond 3G: SANYO 3.5G phone for 2.4Mbps data download (for KDDI/AU):
KDDI/AU 3G phone W21SASANYO show at Wireless Japan 2004
Wireless Japan 2004: NEC “tag” wrapping multimedia design concept phone:
Concept model phone by NEC at WirelessJapan-2004 exhibition
“Wireless Japan 2004” – much was expected: for example, it wasn’t surprising for anyone that DoCoMo’s i-Mode-FeliCa wallet-phones were center stage of the DoCoMo exhibit with lots of partners demoing wallet-phone applications.
NEC concept phoneNEC concept phone
Matsushita/Panasonic “Beyond 3G” design concepts:
Panasonic concept phone
DoCoMo UbiButton and UbiChip:
DoCoMo’s UbiButton and UbiChip
DoCoMo i-Mode-FeliCa wallet phones – for electronic cash:
the world’s first commercial wallet phone: P506iC – by DoCoMo and Panasonic
DoCoMo i-Mode-FeliCa wallet phones – as an electronic door key:
Mobile phone as a RFID key to lock and unlock doors
We have substantial documentation about the Wireless Japan 2004 exhibition, and most other year’s Wireless Japan exhibitions. If you need information or documentation for prior art or other investigations, please contact us.
Learn more: report on Japan’s telecom sector (269 pages, pdf file):