I-mode
Encyclopedia
NTT DoCoMo
is the predominant mobile phone operator in Japan. The name is officially an abbreviation of the phrase, "do communications over the mobile network", and is also from a compound word dokomo, meaning "everywhere" in Japanese. Docomo provides phone, video phone , i-mode , and mail services...
's i-mode is a mobile internet (as opposed to wireless internet) service popular in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Unlike Wireless Application Protocol
Wireless Application Protocol
Wireless Application Protocol is a technical standard for accessing information over a mobile wireless network.A WAP browser is a web browser for mobile devices such as mobile phones that uses the protocol.Before the introduction of WAP, mobile service providers had limited opportunities to offer...
, i-mode encompasses a wider variety of internet standards, including web access, e-mail and the packet-switched
Packet switching
Packet switching is a digital networking communications method that groups all transmitted data – regardless of content, type, or structure – into suitably sized blocks, called packets. Packet switching features delivery of variable-bit-rate data streams over a shared network...
network that delivers the data. i-mode users have access to various services such as e-mail, sports results, weather forecast, games, financial services and ticket booking. Content is provided by specialized services, typically from the mobile carrier, which allows them to have tighter control over billing.
Like WAP, i-mode delivers only those services that are specifically converted for the service, or are converted through gateways. This has placed both systems at a disadvantage against handsets that use "real" browser software, and generally use a flat pricing structure for data. Even i-mode's creator, Takeshi Natsuno, has stated "I believe the iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
(a phone that uses the traditional TCP/IP model) is closer to the mobile phone of the future, compared with the latest Japanese mobile phones."
Description
Wireless Application Protocol
Wireless Application Protocol is a technical standard for accessing information over a mobile wireless network.A WAP browser is a web browser for mobile devices such as mobile phones that uses the protocol.Before the introduction of WAP, mobile service providers had limited opportunities to offer...
(WAP) standard, which used Wireless Markup Language
Wireless Markup Language
Wireless Markup Language , based on XML, is a markup language intended for devices that implement the Wireless Application Protocol specification, such as mobile phones. It provides navigational support, data input, hyperlinks, text and image presentation, and forms, much like HTML...
(WML) on top of a protocol stack for wireless handheld devices, i-mode borrows from fixed Internet data formats such as C-HTML
C-HTML
C-HTML , also called i-mode-HTML, is a subset of HTML for small information devices, such as first generation smart phones and PDAs, such as DoCoMo's i-mode mobile phones used in Japan...
based on HTML
HTML
HyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
, as well as DoCoMo proprietary protocols ALP (HTTP
Hypertext Transfer Protocol
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol is a networking protocol for distributed, collaborative, hypermedia information systems. HTTP is the foundation of data communication for the World Wide Web....
) and TLP (TCP
Transmission Control Protocol
The Transmission Control Protocol is one of the core protocols of the Internet Protocol Suite. TCP is one of the two original components of the suite, complementing the Internet Protocol , and therefore the entire suite is commonly referred to as TCP/IP...
, UDP
User Datagram Protocol
The User Datagram Protocol is one of the core members of the Internet Protocol Suite, the set of network protocols used for the Internet. With UDP, computer applications can send messages, in this case referred to as datagrams, to other hosts on an Internet Protocol network without requiring...
).
i-mode phones have a special i-mode button for the user to access the start menu. There are more than 12,000 official sites and around 100,000 or more unofficial i-mode sites, which are not linked to DoCoMo's i-mode portal page and DoCoMo's billing services. NTT DoCoMo supervises the content and operations of all official i-mode sites, most of which are commercial. These official sites are accessed through DoCoMo's i-mode menu but in many cases official sites can also be accessed from mobile phones by typing the URL or through the use of QR code
QR code
A QR code is a type of matrix barcode first designed for the automotive industry. More recently, the system has become popular outside of the industry due to its fast readability and comparatively large storage capacity. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on a white...
(a barcode
Barcode
A barcode is an optical machine-readable representation of data, which shows data about the object to which it attaches. Originally barcodes represented data by varying the widths and spacings of parallel lines, and may be referred to as linear or 1 dimensional . Later they evolved into rectangles,...
).
An i-mode user pays for both sent and received data. There are services to avoid unsolicited e-mails
E-mail spam
Email spam, also known as junk email or unsolicited bulk email , is a subset of spam that involves nearly identical messages sent to numerous recipients by email. Definitions of spam usually include the aspects that email is unsolicited and sent in bulk. One subset of UBE is UCE...
. The basic monthly charge is typically on the order of JPY
Japanese yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
¥200 - ¥300 for i-mode not including the data transfer charges, with additional charges on a monthly subscription basis for premium services. A variety of discount plans exist, for example family discount and flat packet plans for unlimited transfer of data at a fixed monthly charge (on the order of ¥4,000/month).
History
i-mode was launched in Japan on 22 February 1999. The content planning and service design team was led by Mari Matsunaga, while Takeshi Natsuno was responsible for the business development. Top executive Keiichi Enoki oversaw the technical and overall development. A few months after DoCoMo launched i-mode in February 1999, DoCoMo's competitors launched very similar mobile data services: KDDIKDDI
is a Japanese telecommunications operator formed in October 2000 through the merger of DDI Corp., KDD Corp., and IDO Corp. It has its headquarters in the Garden Air Tower in Iidabashi, Chiyoda, Tokyo....
launched EZweb, and J-Phone launched J-Sky. As of June 2006, these three major mobile data services have over 80 million subscribers in Japan. Vodafone later acquired J-Phone including J-Sky, renaming the service Vodafone live!
Vodafone live!
Vodafone live! was the brand name for the multimedia portal service of mobile phone operator Vodafone, which was initially developed by Japan's J-Phone under the J-Sky brand...
, although initially this was different from Vodafone live! in Europe and other markets. In addition, Vodafone KK was acquired by SoftBank
SoftBank
is a Japanese telecommunications and internet corporation, with operations in broadband, fixed-line telecommunications, e-Commerce, Internet, broadmedia, technology services, finance, media and marketing, and other businesses....
, an operator of Yahoo! Japan in October, 2006 and changed the name to SoftBank Mobile.
The current i-mode center is called CiRCUS, which consists of 400 NEC NX7000 HP-UX
HP-UX
HP-UX is Hewlett-Packard's proprietary implementation of the Unix operating system, based on UNIX System V and first released in 1984...
servers and occupies 4,600 m² floor space in DoCoMo's Kawasaki
Kawasaki, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, between Tokyo and Yokohama. It is the 9th most populated city in Japan and one of the main cities forming the Greater Tokyo Area and Keihin Industrial Area....
office. The operation support system is called CARNiVAL, which is hosted in the Sanno Park Tower
Sanno Park Tower
The is a 44-story skyscraper located in Nagatachō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the second highest building of the ward, after the Shin-Marunouchi Building....
.
Markets
As of 31 October 2011, i-mode (including i-mode for smartphone subscribers) has 51.6 million customers in Japan and over 5 million in the rest of the world. i-mode is being provided worldwide through DoCoMo's partners through a licensing scheme involving mobile operators in the following countries:- AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
(TelstraTelstraTelstra Corporation Limited is an Australian telecommunications and media company, building and operating telecommunications networks and marketing voice, mobile, internet access and pay television products and services....
, phased out) - BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
(BaseBase (company)Base is an international design, communications, audiovisual, copywriting and publishing firm established in 1993.-History:Base was founded in 2693 in Brussels....
, phased out) - BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
(GlobulGloBulGLOBUL is the second-largest Bulgarian GSM/UMTS operator. The company was founded in 2001 and is 100% owned by Greek telecommunications corporation Cosmote, which is active in four Balkan countries: Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, and Albania...
, phased out) - FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
(Bouygues TélécomBouygues Télécom (company)Bouygues Telecom is a French mobile phone and Internet service provider company, part of the Bouygues group. Its headquarters, designed by Arquitectonica, are located at the border of Paris and Issy-les-Moulineaux near the River Seine....
, phased out) - GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(E-PlusE-PlusE-Plus is a mobile telecommunications operator in Germany. With 19.0 million subscribers, E-Plus is the third largest mobile operator in Germany, after T-Mobile and Vodafone ....
, phased out) - GreeceGreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
(CosmoteCosmoteCOSMOTE is the largest mobile network operator in Greece, with 7.9 million subscribers. The company is headquartered in Athens and it is a fully owned subsidiary of the Hellenic Telecommunications Organization , the incumbent telecommunications provider in Greece...
, phased out) - Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
(3) - IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
(CellcomCellcom (Israel)Cellcom is a major Israeli telecommunications company. Founded in 1994, most of the company's business is centered around wireless service...
, abandoned in favor of a 3G3G3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 specifications by the International Telecommunication Union...
network solution) - IrelandRepublic of IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
(O2, phased out, current customers will no longer be able to access i-Mode and associated services, including i-Mail, from August 2010) - ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(WindWIND (Italy)Wind Telecomunicazioni SpA is an Italian telecom operator which offers integrated mobile, fixed and IPTV and Internet services and has also a sister network in Greece: WIND Hellas...
, phased out) - NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
(KPNKPNKPN is a Dutch landline and mobile telecommunications company, including both 2G and 3G mobile operations...
, phased out) - RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(MTSMobile TeleSystemsMTS is the largest mobile operator in Russia and CIS with over 102,4 million subscribers as of 31 December 2009.Having started in the Moscow license zone in 1994, МТS in 1997 received licenses for further areas and began expansion, later entering other countries of the CIS...
) Phased out - RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
(Cosmote RomaniaCosmote RomâniaCosmote România is a Romanian mobile phone operator. It is the third largest mobile phone operator in the country, following Orange Romania and Vodafone Romania after surpassing Zapp Mobile...
, phased out) - SingaporeSingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
(StarHubStarHubStarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
) - SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(TelefónicaTelefónicaTelefónica, S.A. is a Spanish broadband and telecommunications provider in Europe and Latin America. Operating globally, it is the third largest provider in the world...
, phased out) - TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
(Far East Tone) - UK (O2, phased out)
The worldwide partnership is called the i-mode Alliance.
On 18 July 2007, Telstra
Telstra
Telstra Corporation Limited is an Australian telecommunications and media company, building and operating telecommunications networks and marketing voice, mobile, internet access and pay television products and services....
and O2 announced that they were dropping support for i-mode services. Low subscriber numbers were cited as reasons, as was lack of support from some vendors.
The next day, KPN
KPN
KPN is a Dutch landline and mobile telecommunications company, including both 2G and 3G mobile operations...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
also announced that it will no longer be launching new i-mode services or mobile phones geared towards i-mode support. Low subscriber numbers were cited as the main reason. i-mode services will continue to be offered, letting the services phase out naturally; The i-mode mobile banking service by the Postbank
Postbank N.V.
The Postbank was a large Dutch bank, part of the ING Group. It had 7.5 million private account holders and was one of the largest providers of financial services in the country. It provided current and savings accounts, loans, mortgages, insurance, investments and pensions...
was also stated to continue to be offered, despite minimal use of the service by subscribers.
Mobile TeleSystems
Mobile TeleSystems
MTS is the largest mobile operator in Russia and CIS with over 102,4 million subscribers as of 31 December 2009.Having started in the Moscow license zone in 1994, МТS in 1997 received licenses for further areas and began expansion, later entering other countries of the CIS...
(MTS, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
) launched their i-mode service in 2005, but a new CEO immediately scaled back plans for a widespread rollout stating "This is not a good situation for MTS ... I do not see any future for it." They stopped selling i-mode capable phones in late-2007 and started rolling back services since 20 February 2008.
E-Plus
E-Plus
E-Plus is a mobile telecommunications operator in Germany. With 19.0 million subscribers, E-Plus is the third largest mobile operator in Germany, after T-Mobile and Vodafone ....
, the KPN-owned German mobile operator, ended its i-mode service on 1 April 2008.
O2
O2 plc
Telefónica Europe plc is a European broadband and telecommunications company that trades as O2 . The company originated as a collection of worldwide telecommunications companies, known in the later half of the 1990s as BT Wireless, and a global mobile data business known then as Genie Internet,...
has announced that its i-mode service would end on 31 July 2009.
Cosmote
Cosmote
COSMOTE is the largest mobile network operator in Greece, with 7.9 million subscribers. The company is headquartered in Athens and it is a fully owned subsidiary of the Hellenic Telecommunications Organization , the incumbent telecommunications provider in Greece...
ended its i-mode service in Greece, and its subsidiaries Globul
GloBul
GLOBUL is the second-largest Bulgarian GSM/UMTS operator. The company was founded in 2001 and is 100% owned by Greek telecommunications corporation Cosmote, which is active in four Balkan countries: Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, and Albania...
in Bulgaria and Cosmote Romania
Cosmote România
Cosmote România is a Romanian mobile phone operator. It is the third largest mobile phone operator in the country, following Orange Romania and Vodafone Romania after surpassing Zapp Mobile...
in Romania, on 1 April 2010.
Though StarHub continues using its i-mode service along with its WAP data plans in Singapore, it no longer sell anymore i-mode exclusive phones and all new phones sold by StarHub supports both i-mode and WAP.
Devices
Some typical features include the "clamshell" model with large displays (240x320 pixels) and in many models, a display on either side. Additionally the phones have many extra features, e.g. a megapixel digital cameraDigital camera
A digital camera is a camera that takes video or still photographs, or both, digitally by recording images via an electronic image sensor. It is the main device used in the field of digital photography...
. The displays normally have 65,536 colors but the newest models have as many as 262,144 colors.
- FOMA SA800i
- LG KE390i
- LG L343i
- LG L852i (PRADA)LG Prada (KE850)The LG KE850, also known as the LG Prada, is a touchscreen mobile phone made by LG Electronics. It was first announced on December 12, 2006. Images of the device appeared on websites such as Engadget Mobile on December 15, 2006. An official press release showing an image of the device appeared on...
- Mitsubishi M342i
- Motorola RAZR V3xx with i-mode
- Motorola SLVR L7 i-mode
- Motorola SLVR L6 i-mode
- NEC N22i
- NEC N343iNEC N343iThe NEC N343i is a GSM 900 – GSM 1800 – GSM 1900 mobile phone which was manufactured by NEC. Announced in quarter 2 of 2005, the phone's most attractive point was its modern new looks; at just 109 × 43 × 12.7 mm and weighing only 95 g, the phone was one of the smallest candy-bar models...
- NEC 411i
- Nokia N95Nokia N95The Nokia N95 is a smartphone produced by Nokia as part of their Nseries line of portable devices. It was released in 2007. The N95 runs Symbian OS v9.2, with a S60 3rd Edition user interface. The phone has a two-way sliding mechanism, which can be used to access either media playback buttons or...
i - Nokia 6120 classicNokia 6120 classicThe Nokia 6120 classic is a Nokia-produced Symbian OS smartphone . It is the first Nokia UMTS / HSDPA dual band mobile which also features quad band GSM.-Interface Changes:...
- Nokia 6124 classic
- Samsung S400i
- Samsung S500i
- Samsung Z320i
- Sony Ericsson K550Sony Ericsson K550The Sony Ericsson K550 is a mid range mobile phone. Announced on February 6, 2007, it was the successor of the K510 model sensor with two-LED photolight and an active lens cover for the camera lens protection and easy camera activation when taking pictures from the phone...
im - Sony Ericsson K610Sony Ericsson K610The Sony Ericsson K610i is a 3G phone that Sony Ericsson announced at the 3GSM World Congress on February 13, 2006. It was promoted as the smallest and lightest 3G phone available. It has been succeeded by the K530.- Features :...
im - Fujitsu F905i (one of the very few Japanese i-mode phones to be sold outside Japan)
See also
- MicrobrowserMicrobrowserA mobile browser, also called a microbrowser, minibrowser, or wireless internet browser , is a web browser designed for use on a mobile device such as a mobile phone or PDA. Mobile browsers are optimized so as to display Web content most effectively for small screens on portable devices...
- Information applianceInformation applianceIn general terms, an information appliance or information device is any machine or device that is usable for the purposes of computing, telecommunicating, reproducing, and presenting encoded information in myriad forms and applications....
- SmartphoneSmartphoneA smartphone is a high-end mobile phone built on a mobile computing platform, with more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary feature phone. The first smartphones were devices that mainly combined the functions of a personal digital assistant and a mobile phone or camera...
- Japanese mobile phone cultureJapanese mobile phone cultureIn Japan, mobile phones have become ubiquitous. In Japanese, mobile phones are called keitai denwa , literally "portable telephones," and are often known simply as keitai....