Japan’s Changing Smartphone Market
By all indications, Japan is experiencing a shakedown in the mobile phone handset industry.
One prominent feature of Japanese smartphones is their use in dispensing electronic money, paying for train and bus tickets, and convenience store products.
Of course, there are differences between how the Japanese use their phones for purchases. The concept of electronic wallets as implemented outside of Japan is much like sending a text message to the carrier or electronic money repository. In Japan, mobile phone electronic wallets are used like toll-free e-cards. The Japanese just swipe their phone at a reader in order to pay or to transfer cash.
Even before Android phones and the iPhone were introduced to Japan, mobile phone apps had gone beyond communications. They were particularly used for gaming – one of the largest markets for mobile phones in terms of revenues.
The market penetration of Android and iOS phones and tablets in Japan is unprecedented. No other product, electronic or otherwise has had a successful run at the Japanese market. Currently, Android devices account for 64% of the smartphone market, while Apple iOS accounts for 32%. There are, of course, Japanese manufacturers which have Android as their operating systems, but nevertheless, the use of feature phones seems to be in danger of extinction.
With the success of these imports, the features which make feature phones so compelling might soon appear as apps in Android, iOS, and to a certain extent, Windows Phone. The only hurdle remaining are the usually isolated instances of interoperability, where one e-wallet may not work with a particular phone model. The infrastructure for electronic wallets has been painstakingly built and won’t disappear soon. It just makes sense for developers and phone manufacturers to create apps to replace feature phones.
Another good news for Android and iOS fans, as well as developers, is that carriers and service providers are actively pushing these phones. For Japanese manufacturers, there has been a shift in strategy.
Apple fans need not worry about iOS presence in Japan. In terms of actual units sold, the 32% market share is a solid number which does not seem to be shrinking. Apple has always had a great fan base in Japan, and this has translated to the iPhone and iPad as well. Japanese developers taken notice of the large installed base and created new titles specifically for iPad and iPhone. Existing apps are also being ported to iOS, underlying Apple’s growing strength in Japan.
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About the Guest Author:
Rodolfo Lentejas, Jr. is a fulltime freelance writer based in Toronto. He is the founder of the PostSckrippt, a growing online writing business dedicated to producing top quality, original and fresh content. To know more about him, please visit www.postsckrippt.ca. Like him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest
