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NTT Docomo Case Study

19-11-2007

NTT DoCoMo, NEC and Picsel introduce the “Keitai 2.0” mobile browsing experience to Japanese consumers

The Challenge
When it was first introduced in 2001, NTT DoCoMo’s FOMA - or “Freedom of Mobile Multimedia Access” - offering was the world’s first full-scale 3G service, giving Japanese consumers access to rich mobile content and the worldwide web from their handsets for the very first time. NTT DoCoMo has continued to develop the FOMA service since then and, for the most recent step in its evolution, the operator sought to develop a new mobile web browsing experience, which would make the mobile phone the mass-market device of choice for accessing the internet in Japan.

The Innovative Solution
Having conducted primary research to ascertain consumer opinion on the ideal characteristics for a mobile web browser, NTTDoCoMo approached handset manufacturer NEC and mobile software provider Picsel to realise it’s vision for the “Keitai 2.0” experience - literally Japanese for “Mobile 2.0”. Debuting on NEC’s N904i handset in April 2007, the resulting Keitai 2.0 browser incorporates two innovative features, enabled by Picsel’s unique ePage technology. Firstly, Superfast Zoom & Pan builds upon Picsel’s signature zoom and pan capabilities, allowing the user to scan the totality of a webpage within seconds. The functionality of Superfast Zoom & Pan - which intuitively leverages the phone’s keypad - allows the user to find and focus on detail easily, without losing its context within the original page layout. It also supports video content on the internet. Secondly, the Raku Raku Keyboard and Graphical Tool Bar represent industry-first advances in mobile web user interface design. By mirroring the familiar URL search, favorites, forward and back features of traditional desktop web browsers in an instinctive and dynamic graphical entry system, the Keitai 2.0 browser overcomes the limitations of the mobile keypad for inputting web addresses.

The Results
The consumer reaction to the Keitai 2.0 experience has been phenomenal - the advanced browser functionality has been attributed as the reason that the CUI browser based NEC N904i broke all records for new Japanese handset sales, with over 40,000 sales in the first
weekend and over 480,000 phones shipped in the first three months of launch.

Customer Reaction
“Picsel Technologies’ innovative approach to mobile browsing delivers a completely new mobile experience which fully eclipses the capability of traditional internet surfing mechanisms. The great experiences made possible by using Picsel Browser in conjunction with HSDPA and Pakehodai full service, will attract a number of users who spend more time browsing internets on mobile phones than on PCs. Picsel’s next-generation content technology is very attractive to NTT DoCoMo as it brings mobile users superb content experiences, while suggesting further innovation on mobile browsing to come.” - Takeshi Natsuno, SVP Managing Director of NTT DoCoMo

Media Reaction
“Picsel Browser is really amazing, too good to be true!” - Jin Uehara

“Truly amazing is Picsel Browser!” - Hirofumi Ono

“Already the rumor is starting to spread among bloggers: Picsel Browser from Picsel Technologies on NTT Docomo N904i, which launched 25th May is fabulous! This product was developed based on the assumption that as the mobile phone’s display size will be always small… there is a need to compensate it by “depth”. As zoom in and out can be performed very fast, you can go to any part you would like to see efficiently.” - Hirofumi Ono, Mobile Impact

The Future
Record breaking sales and consumer reaction is testament to the fact that providing a compelling and rich user experience on mobile is no longer a luxury offering, but a necessity. Furthermore, this success in Japan is a significant bellwether for European and U.S. mobile players, showing that it is high time to acknowledge the power and influence of adopting advanced mobile web browsing solutions. Currently, the view amongst many Western markets is that mobile browsing, as well as mobile applications and content services generally, is a ‘slow’ and ‘clunky’ experience. Solutions that not only improve but mirror that of what you see on a PC screen are essentially the key to unlocking the plethora of mobile content available today. Picsel’s technology enables such solutions and the company believes that the advanced capabilities of products such as Ketai 2.0 will soon be enabling European and US carriers, content owners and handset manufacturers to deliver rich mobile content to the mainstream market.

Samsung Case Study

02-07-2007

Picsel Technologies expands Samsung relationship

Picsel Technologies, a dynamic mobile solutions provider whose pioneering software brings content on mobile to life, and Samsung Electronics Co, a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunications, digital media and digital convergence technologies, have worked together since April 2003. The relationship was created originally to drive differentiation for handset functionality which included allowing Samsung to deliver rich, PC-style content to Samsung’s extensive range of handsets. Deploying Picsel’s File Viewer, an industry leading solution designed to provide the user with state-of-the-art access, viewing and interactivity of documents on a mobile device, allowed Samsung to deliver efficient performance and value-add benefits to their handset range. In addition, Picsel Browser allowed Samsung to offer full-scale web access providing users to experience full PC-style Internet access on the go. The first phase of the agreement supported Samsung’s flagship devices with the File Viewer application including the following key devices: SGH-D600, SGH-Z400, SGH-D900, SGH-E900, SGH-Z270, BlackJack and SGH-U600 and for Picsel Browser: SGH-i607.  Only a year later, in April 2004, Samsung signed a second contract, this time in the deployment of Picsel’s Photolab Development Kit for the viewing and manipulation of digital images allowing users to improve photo applications by adding effects, zooming and cropping images. The PLDK has all the features and effects of a professional photo lab, putting powerful image manipulation in the hands of massmarket mobile handset users - hence empowering camera-phones with state of the art image processing.

Picsel and Samsung continued to collaborate to provide mobile device users with unrivalled viewing experiences and in November 2006 they launched Picsel’s PowerPlatform solution. With the modern mobile phone facilitating a plethora of content, including music recordings, photographs, contact names and SMS, PowerPlatform enabled Samsung users to dynamically search and scroll the device menus for easy and intuitive content interaction. Samsung devices supporting this application included the SGH-D900, SGH-E900 and the SGH-Z720 models. To date, Picsel solutions are currently shipping on all Samsung OS’s and device form factors, and are available in 52 languages across the globe. Enabling PC-style content and intuitive functionality across a variety of product families, Picsel continues to differentiate Samsung products in a highly competitive market place.

The next phase of the Picsel and Samsung relationship is designed to create and deploy content services which leverage Picsel’s partnerships with content owners. The culmination of this venture will result in the enablement of new services such as price comparison, weather reports and mobile search functionality, which are delivered to Samsung users both at run time within the device and through after market channels.

For carriers, OEMs and brand owners, who wish to create a business in mobile content, Picsel solutions help drive the delivery and uptake of mobile content through the richest user experience available. Unlike the inherent limitations of current mobile content delivery, Picsel provides an industry-leading solution that enables rich content on mobile. The result: the mobile content user experience is higher; attracting new revenue streams for brands, content owners, handset OEMS and operators alike.

Informa Case Study

23-03-2007

Informa selects Picsel to deliver the first ever mobile edition of Telecoms.com to all 3GSM 2007 attendees.

Informa Telecoms & Media is the leading provider of business intelligence and strategic services to the global telecoms and media markets. As such an important authority in the mobile industry, it is important for Informa to integrate the latest mobile technologies into its own communications and service offerings.

When Ed Tranter, Group Publisher for Informa Telecoms and Media, heard how the Picsel Media Consortium could help him launch a premier mobile publishing service at the 3GSM 2007 mobile industry conference in Barcelona, he knew he had found the right partner to launch the first ever mobile edition of Telecoms.com magazine to all 3GSM attendees.

The mobile edition of Telecom.com from Informa was extremely well-received at 3GSM. The fluidity of use and the richness of the content engaged subscribers, making sure that they fully paid attention to the news delivered by Telecom.com. The message was not only supported by the platform, but magnified.

The success of this partnership has since attracted interest from a number of new business partners, who are keen to make use of Picsel’s ability to make receiving content on mobile phones into a truly compelling experience.

There are further plans for Picsel and Informa to work together in 2007.

Panasonic Case Study

21-03-2007

Together, Picsel and Panasonic pave the way

In July 2003, Picsel Technologies teamed up with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. (best known for its Panasonic brand name) to drive forward the emerging market in Flash Based Memory (FBM).

A world leader in FBM manufacturing, Panasonic was looking for a differentiator to maintain its position at the forefront of the industry. An opportunity presented itself in the shape of a new distribution method - SD Memory Cards. Equipped with the right functionality, these cards could revolutionise the Internet browsing and file viewing capabilities of Panasonic’s mobile devices.

To make it happen, Matsushita turned to the experts in rich content delivery, Picsel. By embedding Picsel Browser and Picsel File Viewer into Panasonic’s SD Memory Cards, Picsel opened the doors to all kinds of content rich experiences, including internet browsing, Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel and PowerPoint), PDF, HTML (and mHTML), Flash, Plain Text and standard image formats. Not only that, the Picsel Powered solutions are paving the way for the next generation of applications, such as comic books featuring graphics and video.

Released for the Sharp Zaurus, the first shipment of SD cards sold out completely, proving their immediate popularity. Commenting on the success, Shigeru Omori, Director of Matsushita’s Corporate Industrial Sales & Marketing Division, said, “Our partnership with Picsel makes their advanced software technology available even more widely for mobile information/communication devices using SD Cards, which is now the most popular format of flash memory cards. As a leading supplier of SD Memory Card products, I am confident that Panasonic can enhance the customer’s experience.”

With more releases of the Panasonic SD card expected soon and further adaptations of the delivery method available to manufacturers, operators and content providers, the future success of FBM looks assured.

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