http://www.opengardensblog.futuretext.com/archives/2007/04/mobile_as_the_s_2.html Wireless mobility - Innovation - Digital convergence - mobile web 2.0 Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:47:14 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://www.opengardensblog.futuretext.com/archives/2007/04/mobile_as_the_s_2.html/comment-page-1#comment-1032 Lars Fri, 27 Apr 2007 05:27:48 +0000 http://dev5.indigocontenthost.co.uk/archives/2007/04/mobile_as_the_s_2.html#comment-1032 Hi Ajit: The same Wired who pooh-poohed the camera phone "those Japanese just love taking pictures but that will never fly here" sometime back in 2001? It would be interesting to see if Brian Ashcraft, the author of the article you link to above, could point-out any handsets available in Japan today installed with Oki's app. as it's development was just announced in Nov. last year: <a href="http://www.oki.com/en/press/2006/z06114e.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.oki.com/en/press/2006/z06114e.html</a> According to that press release the company "planned" to commercialize in March 2007. While of course we have seen other biometric security functions deployed here, Fujitsu's fingerprint scanner being perhaps the most famous, even Omron's Face Recognition software has been available for a few years: <a href="http://wirelesswatch.jp/2005/04/13/omrons-face-recognition-for-mobile/" rel="nofollow">http://wirelesswatch.jp/2005/04/13/omrons-face-recognition-for-mobile/</a> However, in all my time on the Tokyo scene, I've never seen a person use one of these apps! The whole attraction to embedded RFID chips is speed.. Tap and Go. The moment you have to pin or otherwise authenticate a transaction the convenience, compared to using cash, is lost. The concern about thieves stealing (which is hardly an issue here in the first place) further reflects Wired's typically sensationalistic and un-informed observations about how mobile really works here in Japan. People are much less likely to lose their handsets and if/when they realize (soon!) they can make one phone call and lock the device. See DoCoMo's "Services and functions for peace of mind" page - in English - for more details: <a href="http://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/service/anshin/" rel="nofollow">http://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/service/anshin/</a> The Osaifu Keitai or 'Mobile Wallet' is exactly that.. what happens when people loose their old analog wallet?? They make a call and suspend the credit-cards but they can't "lock" the cash.. lol. Sorry for the long rant.. as your main topic, based on Tomi's initial blog, is much more in-depth it would take more time than I have on a Friday to address with the respect it deserves. That being said I would suggest that the evolution from 2D barcodes into RFID posters is an obvious path that we have already seen beta testing on the street here over the last year.. 8-) Cheers, Lars Hi Ajit:
The same Wired who pooh-poohed the camera phone “those Japanese just love taking pictures but that will never fly here” sometime back in 2001? It would be interesting to see if Brian Ashcraft, the author of the article you link to above, could point-out any handsets available in Japan today installed with Oki’s app. as it’s development was just announced in Nov. last year:
http://www.oki.com/en/press/2006/z06114e.html
According to that press release the company “planned” to commercialize in March 2007.
While of course we have seen other biometric security functions deployed here, Fujitsu’s fingerprint scanner being perhaps the most famous, even Omron’s Face Recognition software has been available for a few years:
http://wirelesswatch.jp/2005/04/13/omrons-face-recognition-for-mobile/
However, in all my time on the Tokyo scene, I’ve never seen a person use one of these apps! The whole attraction to embedded RFID chips is speed.. Tap and Go. The moment you have to pin or otherwise authenticate a transaction the convenience, compared to using cash, is lost. The concern about thieves stealing (which is hardly an issue here in the first place) further reflects Wired’s typically sensationalistic and un-informed observations about how mobile really works here in Japan. People are much less likely to lose their handsets and if/when they realize (soon!) they can make one phone call and lock the device. See DoCoMo’s “Services and functions for peace of mind” page – in English – for more details:
http://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/service/anshin/
The Osaifu Keitai or ‘Mobile Wallet’ is exactly that.. what happens when people loose their old analog wallet?? They make a call and suspend the credit-cards but they can’t “lock” the cash.. lol.
Sorry for the long rant.. as your main topic, based on Tomi’s initial blog, is much more in-depth it would take more time than I have on a Friday to address with the respect it deserves. That being said I would suggest that the evolution from 2D barcodes into RFID posters is an obvious path that we have already seen beta testing on the street here over the last year.. Cheers,
Lars

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