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NTT DoCoMo's i-mode is a wireless internet service for i-mode mobile
phones using HTTP, popular in Japan and increasingly also elsewhere. It was
inspired by WAP developed in the US, and was introduced to DoCoMo by
McKinsey in 1997. i-mode was launched in Japan on February 22, 1999. The
contents planning and service design team was led by Ms. Mari Matsunaga.
i-mode is a WAP-like service which uses domestically developed C-HTML,
and DoCoMo prorietary ALP (HTTP, POP3) and TLP (TCP, UDP) protocols. It
became a runaway success because of well designed services and
business
model. It uses C-HTML (for "Compact HTML") markup language, a subset of
HTML. Later on NTT DoCoMo's collaboration with Sun Microsystem resulted in
DoJa i-appli, an extension of CLDC (not compatible with J2ME/MIDP). There
are some 3000 content-providing companies for i-mode.
As of September 2003, i-mode has 40 millions customers in Japan, and 1
million in the rest of the world. i-mode is being used or tested in
following countries: Germany, Holland, Belgium, France, Spain, Italy,
Greece, and Taiwan. Also, a version called m-mode is being used in the USA.
It is a global ecosystem where the operator design the compatible
handsets, give strong editorial and usability rules to content providers,
and propose an open
business model to them. i-mode uses open standards as
technologies: A light version of HTML is used for producing content, the i-mode
mail, though technically challenged and is very hard to upgrade, is
interoperable with Internet e-mail and images and sounds formats are the
ones used on the Web. i-mode users have access to various services, e.g.
e-mail, sports results, weather forecast, games, financial services and
ticket booking.
The current i-mode center is called CiRCUS, which consists of 400 NEC
NX7000 HP-UX servers and occupies 4600 sqm floor space in DoCoMo's Kawasaki
office. The operation support system is called CARNiVAL which is hosted in
Toranomon JT Building.
i-mode phones
Some typical features include so-called shell model, large displays (250x
320 pixels) and in many models, a display on either side. Additionally the
phones have many extra features, e.g. a digital camera of a megapixel. The
displays normally have 65536 colors but the newest models have as many as
262144 colors. The phones measure and weigh about the same as Nokia models.
A typical i-mode phone is comparable to a Nokia 6600 model.
i-mode in use
i-mode phones have a special i-mode button for the user to access the
start menu. There are thousands of official sites and tens of thousands of
unofficial ones. NTT DoCoMo supervises the content on the official sites and
they are often commercial. These official sites are accessed through the
menus but the unofficial site addresses have to be typed manually.
An i-mode user pays for both sent and received data. Receiving costs
about the half of sending. There are different kinds of services to avoid
unwanted reception of data. The basic monthly charge is ¥300 for i-mode,
with additional charges for data and premium services.
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