Coming very soon: Common Web TV standard in Japan

I guess there is no doubt that in a couple of years, the link between Television and the web will be much stronger than it is now.

Here in Japan, TV sets featuring direct Internet access are expected to be sold as early as next year. In preparation of this move, manufacturers and web TV providers are currently trying to agree on a common technical standard. Their obvious aims are to avoid making end customers decide between different solutions and getting into a format "war".

Makers like Sony and Matsushita are on the forefront of the hardware side whereas the Internet service providers include companies like acTVila (some info from me about acTVila and web TV in Japan can be found in an earlier post).

It is remarkable (at least in my view) that
a) this development is almost not covered in Non-Japanese language
b) the Japanese companies involved are trying to come to an agreement as early as next month
and
c) they are likely to call on the International Telecommunications Union to make the "Japanese way" the global standard.

Let's see if this will happen!

Report: Gaijin-lead Web 2.0 service iknow! event in Tokyo

Last Wednesday, I attended an event at the Tokyo 21 c Business Club in Marunouchi focusing on the relatively fresh Japanese web service iknow! (link leads to an English page).

iknow! is marketed as a social learning web service for Japanese users interested in studying English. On the site, teachers can connect to students and students can interact with each other to improve their English skills. However, that's not all.

In fact, iknow! is a full-fledged web site featuring TONS of functions which are useful also for completely individual training: dictations, vocabulary tests, quizzes, brain stimulation games etc. When the service launched in October last year, I was actually VERY impressed with its high quality and the team is working on improving and expanding iknow!.

Cerego, the US-based company running the service uses, chose "learning technologies" as its slogan. In fact, Cerego's CEO Eric Young told me several scientists were hired to make sure iknow! is being developed in Japan based on the most current methodologies of learning and teaching languages.

The event itself centered on the main functions iknow! offers to users and a Q&A which followed after the presentation. Eric and Andrew Smith Lewis (CEO of Cerego Japan) answered several questions from the audience which included iknow! users who were not from the web industry or press. I found that very cool!

The language education industry in Japan is a multi-billion dollar business. I am eager to see how iknow! will try to monetize its service in the future. Although Cerego employs a huge team, iknow! is completely free at the moment! The CEOs said the main focus at the moment is to attract as many users as possible.

And the initial numbers are more than impressive: According to information given during the presentation, 100.000 users are currently registered. This service is going to be a huge success, I am sure!

Pictures: iknow! event at Tokyo 21c Business Club (click to enlarge)

Japanese company releases new tool for use in Second Life

I personally believe the basic concept behind the idea of Second Life (the existence of "virtual worlds" in 3D populated by avatars) will be here to stay in the web world forever.

In Japan, people took a liking to Second Life particularly after Linden Lab decided to translate the site into Japanese last year. In November, major TV network Nihon TV broadcasted the world's first show recorded in the virtual world (as reported). And the show is still on.

Japanese company offers Second Life services
There are quite a few companies which exist only because there is Second Life. MagSL (Magazine Second Life) for example is a Tokyo-based provider for various services related to Second Life. The company offers auction tools, construction, advertising and other services tailored for that virtual world.

Since late February, MagSL added an ASP solution to analyze behavior of avatars in 3D environment to their product range. In the corresponding press release, the company says it distinguishes user behavior on 2D web pages from the way people act in 3D worlds. According to MagSL, this difference justifies specialized behavior analysis software. Well, that makes sense.

MagSL is (naturally) marketing their new product as a pure B2B solution. Companies represented in Second Life can use the software to find out how avatars in Second Life react to their Marketing efforts, i. e. to promoting events.

I think more and more software focused on "virtual worlds" on the web will be released in the future. And interestingly, Japanese companies in particular seem to be pioneering this field.

Sony is soon offering "Playstation Home" for their Playstation 3 video game system while Japanese web powerhouse Transcosmos views its self-developed virtual world "meet-me" as a potential Second Life-Killer.

Remote controller for PC operation and Chinese character input

Typing in Japanese can be a real pain. Whereas using the Roman alphabet to type on a keyboard is a relatively direct and easy issue, typing in Japanese usually involves a lot of converting (i.e. from the Japanese alphabet Hiragana to the Chinese characters called Kanji). Also, there sometimes are multiple Kanji to choose from which is nothing but an additional hassle.

So anything which makes it easier to enter Japanese characters on a PC should be highly welcomed. That is why I decided to blog about a device a friend of mine pointed me to.

New type of remote controller for PCs
The パソコンのリモコン (pasokon no rimokon/PC remote controller) is offered by a company called Tokyo Ergo Corp. and was already introduced at the CEATEC exhibition last year in Chiba. Although I was there, I didn't see the product.

Picture: PC remote controller


Tokyo Ergo says the device makes it possible to use a PC with one hand and claims it can fully substitute both a keyboard and a mouse (I haven't tried it yet)! The remote controller is connected to a PC with a 2 meter cable (USB) and weighs 70 grams.

While mouse movements can be mimicked by just moving the button located on the top of the device, input of Japanese characters is a little trickier. To convert words written in the Roman alphabet or Hiragana to Kanji, it is necessary to observe the screen where a special control switch is displayed. The character which is to be typed in can then be chosen from by moving the button on the screen's control panel (which is possible in 6 different directions).

While this sounds very cumbersome, Tokyo Ergo claims 1.5 Japanese characters can be written per second this way, given the user practiced a bit with the system!

I am not sure if the world needs this piece of hardware but it might be a cool gimmick for some hardcore geeks. The company says its product can be used on a private basis (i.e. for operating a PC while lying down), by handicapped/injurered persons, during business presentations or by sales clerks who don't have to sit down to operate a PC for demonstrating products to customers.

The device is steeply priced at 13,650 Yen (128 USD/85 Euro) and is available through the company's online shop.

10 winners of CNET Japan's Tech Venture contest

Last week, CNET Japan held a Tech venture contest and a total of 10 companies were awarded with prices. The event drew a lot of attention in the Japanese web and IT world.

Companies awarded which have an English website (unfortunately only three do):

- Community Engine
(development of network middleware and applications among other things)

- Utagoe
(broadcasting service)

- Enigmo
(online video commercials through collaboration with consumers, their Rollmio service is available in English)


Companies which offer information in Japanese only:

- Niwango
(operation of i.e. Nico Nico Douga online video platform (my review))

- PTP
(digital TV recording service)

- i-Broadcast
(mobile platform for videos and photos)

- Entermotion
(mobile marketing)

- aucfan.com
(online auction services)

- J-Magic
(face recognition for mobile devices)

- Cirius
(mobile ads)

More information on the winners is available on Akihito Fujii's blog. Akihito-san is working for Sun Microsystems Japan and thankfully provides a detailed write-up about Tech venture 2008 in English (part 1, part 2).

He also acted as a judge for the contest.

Mobile browser from Japan: Jig

Jig is the name of a genuine Japanese Internet software product, a mobile web browser. There is also an English version available which is very welcome. The best point: For overseas customers the usage of jig is completely free!

A few days ago, Taisuke -who is CEO and CTO of the Tokyo-based company of the same name- demonstrated jig to me personally. And I really liked it!

Jig is actually "just" a proxy browser. The Java application reshapes web sites designed for PCs so that they can be displayed on mobile phones. When installed on a handset, (almost) any given web site can be surfed via the "jig browser mouse". The so-called mouse is actually an arrow which users can scroll across web pages and click on items with.

Video: The jig browser in action (direct link and more videos)


The application supports three views: original PC mode (PC view is taken over without modifications), mobile mode or overview (the web site is shrinked to a single screen on the handset). Tabbed browsing is possible. All three major Japanese mobile phone carriers are supported.

Moreover, jig offers mini-applications called jiglets. These include an RSS-reader, a digital clock, a scheduler and many more. It is also possible to install a mailer jiglet with which you can handle PC mail. Jiglets can be developed by the users themselves as well!

Users can also view Flash videos, WMA and WLV files on their handsets.

Downloading the full browser application costs 630 Yen a month (5.80 USD/4 Euros) or 6,000 Yen a year (55.50 USD/38 Euros). It is also possible to install a slimmed-down version for half that price or download a trial version for free. The overseas version is completely free!

Active company
Jig has been around since 2003 and is now competing with other mobile browsers such as Opera Mini and Skyfire.

The company is really active in improving its services. For example, jig won an award at the "Global Mobile Content Awards" held in Korea in 2007 for its "jig movie" application which enables users to view streaming videos (i.e. live content and movies) on their mobile phones. Last December, Yahoo! Japan decided to include a technology developed by jig to include in their mobile widget service "Yahoo! Desktop".

Not bad at all. It is good to see a Japanese company being in such a good position in a very interesting market.

Japan's Information Grand Voyage Project

Western academics in Japan-related research often use the term "iron triangle" when referring to a nexus of power which they say comprises private business, the bureaucracy in this country and its mightiest political party LDP.

If the iron triangle really exists, the boldly titled "Information Grand Voyage Project" (情報大航海: Jouhou Daikoukai) must be one of its offsprings in the IT field. This is the English site provided by the initiator, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (unfortunately the link at the bottom of the page is dead). This ministry (aka METI) is by far the most influential political institution in Japan.

Information found in Non-Japanese media about the Information Grand Voyage Project is curt to say the least. In other words, almost no one outside Japan knows about this initiative although it is planned to last 3 years and involves the METI and major Japanese technology companies. Thus it makes sense to shed some light on this project in the scope of this blog.

Here is Hitachi Consulting's more useful site on the project in English.

Key points and goals
- project began in 2007, lasts until the end of fiscal 2009 covering different phases from development, testing to deployment of innovative technologies
- parties involved: METI, Hitachi, JAL, NTT DoCoMo, Oki Electric, Blogwatcher and other companies
- main principles: user orientation, global contribution and use of open source technology

METI claims the goal of this project is to categorize the amount of information worldwide which exploded in recent years due to advancements in Information Technology and make it usable for human beings. The project partners aim at developing a new kind of search and analysis technology which helps filtering information specifically tailored to the individual in question.

However, the METI is not reluctant to say there is one more intention behind its initiative: proactively boosting Japan's global competitiveness in the IT industry.

There have been LOTS of other projects comparable to the Information Grand Voyage Project in the past (many of them not rooted in the technology sector). Usually, these programs are established to improve infrastructure, enhance competitiveness or to pave the way for revitalization of selected regions or industries in Japan.

How is this abstract project plan turned into concrete activity?
The project covers a number of seperate "mini-projects"/experiments which in the end should lead to the "establishment of an innovative environment". This would just mean bla-bla in a lof of other countries but as usual the Japanese mean it.

One example for such a "project within the big picture" is the "My Life Assist Service" jointly developed by NEC and NTT DoCoMo.



Testing by approximately 2,000 volunteers began last month. Testing sites include Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba. The experiment is scheduled to stop at the end of next month.

Using the GPS function in mobile phones, the service provides users with filtered/useful information specific to their location.

This is not really sensational news but there is more to it. Based on inference technology developed by the University of Tokyo, the My Life Assist Service also takes into account the individual's Web browsing behavior! By combining a user's location with the analysis of (let's say guessing of) his or her tastes and preferences based on web sites previously accessed, the service is presumably able to offer highly individualized information.

I read an interesting example here [j]. If a user listens to a particular song from a movie soundtrack (via his mobile phone-not unusual at all in Japan) very often, the service can recommend trips to sites where the corresponding movie was shot. Another example: If a person seems to browse through sites for vegetarians a lot, the system could display suitable restaurants in the user's vicinity during lunch time.

Cool and bold ideas but some serious privacy issues have already been raised. The companies involved are working on solving the problem though. That may be one of the reasons the My Life Assist Service is still called an "experiment" [j] by DoCoMo itself.

The Japanese government will evaluate which systems (as said above, other companies are developing projects as well) turn out to be worth integrating into the big picture.

While some of the "experiments" sound promising the budget for the Information Grand Voyage Project as a whole is a mere 40 million USD.

Google aims at conquering Japan through the backdoor

Google is the world's No. 1 search engine but here in Japan, Yahoo is the undisputed king - not only for Internet search but also as a very comprehensive portal.



Today it came to light Google Japan will cooperate with Japan's leading telecommunications company and cell phone carrier NTT Docomo. In fact, NTT Docomo is the world's biggest mobile communications company. In Japan, the wireless market is clearly dominated by DoCoMo. The company served more customers in 2006 (51.1 million) than KDDI (25.4 million) and Softbank Mobile (15.2 million) combined!



So Google Japan's choice is not too bad and the Shibuya-based subsidiary surely has the pocket money to get a deal like that financed. The Tokyo Stock Exchange liked Docomo's idea. Docomo shares rose to a five-months high today!

In detail, Docomo plans to integrate Google's search engine, scheduling service, Gmail and other Google functions into its i-mode mobile Internet services.

That's not all. NTT Docomo is part of the Open Hand Set Alliance of Google's Android open source platform for the development of software for handsets. While the integration of Google services into i-mode is scheduled for this spring, Docomo aims at introducing a mobile phone based on Android in the second half of 2008. For example, joint development in the area of localized store information and navigation on mobile phones is planned.

Yahoo Japan is dominant also on handsets
i-mode users can already access Google search with their handsets. My guess is that Google will be featured more prominently on and in Docomo's handsets. For example, my Japanese handset features a "Y!" button with "Y" standing for Yahoo. After pressing it, I am connected to the Internet: The starting page is Yahoo Japan...

So maybe one day there will be a "G" button on Japanese phones and Google can finally conquer this difficult market here ;)

Event report: Firefox Video Awards in Tokyo

Yesterday I attended the Get Firefox Video Award Show (Japanese only) in Azabu, Tokyo. The aim of the event was to promote Firefox in Japan. So far, my favorite browser conquered a 16% share of the market in this country.



(all pictures in this posting courtesy of my friend Thor Asmund)

Mozilla received over 100 video clips from artists from all over Japan. I am not an artist but I would say the overall quality was very good!

This video called "The Night" (done by an artists group called Pantograph from Kanagawa Prefecture) won the Grand Prix (direct link):


The 3 gentlemen on the right are the proud winners:



The videos which won in other categories (like CG/Anime) can be viewed here.

Very artsy atmosphere
The event itself and the venue (Club SuperDeluxe) were really cool but unfortunately, not too many people from the IT industry were there. As expected, Joi Ito was absent. I would have liked to talk to him.

Gen Kanai who is Director of Marketing at Mozilla Japan was the MC and did a great job:



By the way, Gen mentioned that Mozilla organized a similar event last year in the USA. Although entries were accepted from all over the world not one single video reached American shores from Japan or Asia! After seeing the quality of the works yesterday I can say this is a real shame.

PS
Thor uploaded some more photos of the award show here.

Japan's IT industry vs the world

I regularly speak with a lot of Japanese IT experts and insiders personally: software developers, programmers, IT company owners, web designers, bloggers etc.

Regardless of the size of the companies they are working for (some are self-employed) I am constantly impressed about their openness when they talk to me. Usually, they have very critical views on the Japanese IT (software) industry as a whole.

The bottom line is usually this:
From a global perspective, Japan's software industry is weaker than it has to be. For example, there is no web service coming from Japan which people worldwide use.

Basically I agree with this diagnosis. Especially the second statement is true.

You could probably multiple dissertations about this topic. However, a couple of very interesting articles about the current status quo of the Japanese IT industry I stumbled upon sum up major critical points I have heard over the last months.

I believe these articles are worth a read for my Japanese readership as well. The emphasis lies on the factor that counts the most: the professionals working in the IT industry.

1) Newsweek (December 10, 2007 issue)
"Why Apple Isn’t Japanese" is the title of an article in a recent issue of Newsweek International edition. Worth a read although the author puts emphasis on the hardware side.

Essentially the author argues that Japan is falling behind in the global technology race because of out-dated corporate administration systems, lack of innovation, political incompetence and a disconnect of universities and the industry.

He cites Docomo's failure to globally launch its proprietary mobile Internet technology i-mode as an example.

2) JapanInc (Spring 2007 issue)
James Mok, a graduate of Stanford University, is writing an interesting piece on why the Japanese enterprise IT sector can be regarded as relatively weak in his eyes: "My struggle at the Frontline of Japanese Enterprise IT".

Mok's main question:
"Why have Japan’s strengths and its competitiveness in manufacturing not been extended to the Enterprise IT industry?"

His analysis is very deep and deserves special attention because of his working in this very industry in Japan himself.

3) JapanInc (November/December 2007 issue)
In his second article for JapanInc, James Mok asks "How the Japanese IT Industry Destroys Talent".

This is a huge problem for Japan's IT industry. Mok cites a Nikkei Computer survey according to which 70% of all IT people in this country think negatively about their working conditions.

Again, Mok delivers a thought-provoking analysis of the industry and points out why in the current situation even the most skilled Japanese IT engineers can't fully put their potential to good use.

4) Various articles written in Japanese
A reader of my blog (an IT industry insider) pointed me to a couple of articles written by Japanese IT engineers working in this country (sorry, Japanese only).

In these articles/survey results (1,2) and blog postings (1,2) which are (relatively) new some harsh criticism comes to light. The blog postings and surveys are partly connected and refer to each other content-wise.

The surveys reveal that (web) software developers are getting significantly lower salaries than other professional categories. They also have lower chances of getting into highly-paid positions.

One of the bloggers begins his article by writing "日本のIT業界は救いようがない。: Nihon no IT gyoukai wa sukui you ga nai." which translates to "The Japanese IT industry cannot be saved." However, the writer stresses he specifically refers to the system integrator industry (system integrators or "SIer" as an abbreviation in Japanese-English).

Multi-layered topic

Indeed, there is not only ONE software industry but many layers and sub sectors existing within that field. The situation in Japan's game industry is vastly different from the one producing enterprise software, for example.

And there is a high number of talented and powerful programmers in Japan as well of course. For example, the programming language Ruby (on which Ruby on Rails is based) was invented in Japan by Yukihiro "Matz" Matsumoto.

Moreover, some star entrepreneurs do exist in Japan, most notably the members of the 76ers generation (nanaroku sedai: ナナロク世代). All of them are born in or around 1976. These IT-savvy turned company owners include "celebrities" like
- Kasahara Kenji (31, billionaire and President of Japan's No. 1 SNS Mixi)
- Naito Yuki (29, President of web service company Drecom)
- Tanaka Yoshikazu (30, President of SNS GREE)
- Kondo Junya (31, President of web service company and geek heaven Hatena)
and a few others.

As said above, I could write on and on about this very complicated topic. Please keep in mind within the scope of this posting I can only provide my readers with a very rough (and surely incomplete) overview of selected mega trends in the Japanese IT industry.

Web 2.0 event in Tokyo: Learn about Zooomr, Artistsweb and FF3

Yesterday I attended a Tokyo2point0 event in Omotesandou/Tokyo for the first time. Tokyo2point0 is a social network set up by Tokyo-based Englishman and IT fanatic Andrew Shuttleworth. However, members of this community also meet in real life on a regular basis.

You can sign up directly on the site itself, go to Tokyo2point0's Facebook group or get some information on Mixi.

The event yesterday focused on networking and three presentations two of which were hold mainly in English. I really hope all Japanese people in the room understood everything (I couldn't talk to all of them to "check" their language skills).

1) Zooomr.com
Zooomr.com is the name of a rather famous web service which is regularly featured on sites like Techcrunch or Mashable. In its simplest form, Zooomr is a photosharing site. After the event,I talked with Kristopher (the founder and CTO) on Skype and he told me they are not competing with companies like Flickr.

Why? Zooomr in my opinion heavily focuses on social network aspects. Moreover, the site seems to offer more functions than Flickr or other similar products (i.e. Zipline which is kind of an Instant Messenger!), is translated into 16 languages and designed very mobile Internet-friendly (VERY important in Japan).

Also, Zooomr is essentially a JAPANESE web service. The HQ is located in Shibuya, Tokyo and all key people (including Kristopher himself) are based in Japan!

Kristopher also talked about "OpenTransit" which is essentially an open source routing navigation engine for Web Developers. Very cool idea. I hope we can see some great products coming out of that!

Here is the video of Kristopher's presentation (direct link):


2) TheArtistsWeb
Chris Kirkland gave an interesting presentation about his e-commerce platform "The Artists Web". On the site artists from all backgrounds can sign up for a certain yearly fee, set up their own web site (gallery) and then are able to sell their works online to buyers from all over the world. What is sold is not a tangible product but electronic files that can be printed out later.

Chris told me prints are selling particularly well. There are over 27,000 works of art online at the moment!

The company is run from England and Japan with Chris being the owner and based here in Japan.

He also shared his experiences with Facebook and the way they handle developers of FB applications. Bittersweet stories;). Chris is a pretty busy guy: He also runs a gaming network called "The Sentence Game" which almost 30,000 users subscribed to. Wow!

For more information, check out his video (direct link):


3) Firefox 3
The launch of Firefox 3 is not exactly Web 2.0-related but Gen Kanai's presentation and demo was very interesting nonetheless.

Gen is director of Marketing at Mozilla Japan and passionate about pushing Firefox in the Japanese market. Actually he also was responsible for setting up the new Mozilla China (Chinese only) office in Beijing (more on that here).

You can see his cool presentation here (direct link):


Also, please check out Gen's personal site. His blog (written in English) is excellent!

Japan develops software against pirated movies

We all know how it works: Somebody smuggles a video camera into a movie theater, tapes it off the screen and uploads it on a torrent site, Emule, Winny (a Japanese P2P system) or wherever and anybody can download the file later.

In my opinion, Japanese people tend to refrain from illegal downloading. That doesn't mean it isn't happening but I feel the problem is bigger in the US and Europe.

Yesterday, Japanese TV network and relentless innovator NHK and Mitsubishi Electric presented a new system to prevent distribution of counterfeit video material over the Internet. The companies hope their jointly developed watermark technology will enable movie producers to trace illegal copies of their products on the Internet.

If someone copies moving pictures, the camera will tape watermarks embedded in the source material at the same time. Those signals are invisible to the human eye but allow copyright holders to identify their stolen works online by using specially designed software.

NHK and Mitsubishi said stolen material can even be traced even if a part of an image is put on the web! Moreover the system makes it even possible to trace at which cinema and at which time the illegal copy was made. Not bad!

This is not the first time some company claims it has the ultimate weapon to combat online piracy.

However, especially NHK is a power not to be underestimated. NHK is not only Japan's public TV station but also a pioneer in broadcasting technology.

For example, NHK is currently developing "Super-Hi-Vision" which is supposed to succeed HD-TV in 2025. The Super-Hi-Vision format with a resolution of 7,680 × 4,320 pixels is four times as wide and four times as high (!) as HD-TV...

So one can expect this new technology to work in one way or the other.

Review: KakikoTV lets you modifiy videos and photos online

KakikoTV is the name of a relatively new service which has so far been exclusively marketed in Japan. I listened to the interesting presentation of the maker during the Web 2.0 Expo in Tokyo recently (my short article about the expo is here).

Essentially KakikoTV enables users to modify videos and photos online by integrating a range of visual and sound effects, comments or subtitles.

This is the official KakikoTV demo video (direct link).


There is no information in English about KakikoTV anywhere on the Internet so I decided it is time for a write-up from my side ;). Learn how to use and register for KakikoTV as a non-Japanese speaker in a separate post. Please notice I focus on modifying videos in this review (not pictures).

I will review KakikoTV in the following order:

I) General Info
II) Starting Page
III) Functions and Features
IV) Business Modell
V) Opinion


I) General Info
The site is a product of Eviry Inc. (this and most of the following links are in Japanese only) which was founded October 2006. The company is located in Tokyo.

KakikoTV is Eviry's main service and was introduced in March this year. The presentation at the Web 2.0 expo Tokyo promoted Intra Kakiko however, the company's new product which was released just last month. While KakikoTV is B2C, Intra Kakiko is aimed at the B2B market only. In this review, I focus on KakikoTV since this is more of interest to most of the readers of this blog.

II) Starting Page
Please click on the JPEG below in which I translated the main contents of the starting page into English.


The starting page is very clear and almost self-explanatory. The page's third row features a box in which users can type in a Youtube URL to get the video they want to modify. Alternatively, a search term can be entered. KakikoTV then accesses Youtube's data base and presents related videos in grid format (on their own site).

III) Functions and Features

There are a lot of options to modify videos via Kakiko. Please look at my tuturial for details.

This is the page where you can work on the video you chose:


Mainly, users can integrate sounds, pictures, icons, text and animations into videos. You can use the effects given by the site but also add your own!

Effects can be changed in size, appearance (i.e. angle) and color. Users are free to integrate these elements at any given time into any given Youtube video.

More on this in my tutorial on KakikoTV.

IV) Business Modell
There are no advertisements on the site. Also, there are no premium memberships. The company makes money solely with sales of its B2B solution Intra Kakiko.

Youtube could use a service like this and let users pay for it. I am sure that this would be an idea worth trying out.

V) Opinion
A comparison with Youtube's own editing feature "Remixer" (made by Adobe Premiere Expresss) is impossible since at the time of writing I couldn't get it to work on my PC. It is still in Youtube's "Test Tube" section anyway meaning it's not an official service yet.

Pros:
1)
The whole site is very clear in layout and style

2)
The service is easy to use

3)
No need to download and install software of any kind

4)
Clear focus on a selected service (modification and amplification of online videos and pictures)

5)
As a whole, KakikoTV "makes sense", is fun and a useful tool

Cons:
1)
An English version would be good

2)
More functions/effects are always welcome

I think two things about the Internet are true: Firstly, the game for videos is big already and will grow in the future. Secondly, uploading and viewing videos and pictures online for fun or professional purposes is here to stay. This means potential for services as KakikoTV or IntraKakiko is huge.

What I like best about KakikoTV is its usability. Japanese people love the Kantan-principle (kantan (簡単) means easy). And KakikoTV delivers in this respect. Everything is thought through from the users' point of view.

Make sure to read my 2nd posting about KakikoTV in which I analyze the functions and explain how to register (in English).

Overall: Well done!

Paralyzed people can now control avatars by their minds

Scientists at the Biomedical Engineering Faculty (web site is Japanese only) of Tokyo's Keio University (which happens to be my university) have developed a method which enables disabled people to control avatars on the Internet with their minds!

The project team is lead by Keio University associate professor Junichi Ushiba (web site is partly Japanese).

Electrodes attached to a person's head and connected to a computer turn thoughts into actual movement by avatars. The project focused on Second Life (a short take on Second Life is here).

The experiment turned out to be a success (OK, otherwise they wouldn't have shown it to the world). Probands can walk, shop and set up businesses in Second Life! No keyboard or mouse is needed.

I have seen machines in the USA which enable paralyzed people to type emails by using their brains but nothing like this new concept. I am not a biomedical engineer but I think the Japanese method is much more sophisticated.

More information and a movie can be found here. The project team's site is Japanese only but the movie is interesting to watch even if you can't understand the language.

Usage of Mobile TV in Japan on the rise

Nowadays, it is quite hard to get a cell phone in Japan without a TV tuner built in. The first phones able to make use of the Japan-only "1seg"-system (broadcasting of digital audio and video signals) came out as early as 2005 (!).

Yesterday, Sharp -the king of the ring concerning TV displays- announced sales of cell phones equipped with its TV systems topped the 5 million mark since they were introduced in May this year! The JEITA (Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association) said the total number of phones with a TV function built in totaled 13,2 million units until August this year.

Quality issues
Now, I have to say the quality of the 1seg-system is just great: The video is crystal clear and the audio is of superb quality, too. This means the Japanese really have a technological edge here. By the way, Sharp also announced they will produce TV cell phones with a thickness of just 1,8 cm, making the hardware even cooler (they reduced thickness by 5 millimeters).

However, there is one big problem: As of now, watching TV on a Japanese cell phone (even if it is digital and all that) is crap. Can you do it in a train? No. Can you do it in the metro? No. Can you do it in a car? No. Can you do it in a building? It depends (!). That is right, sometimes watching TV in a normal house is just impossible because there is no signal....

But I am sure Japanese companies will solve these problems someday. And: It is free to use for us consumers.

In the future, mobile TV could also be linked to mobile Internet meaning lots of opportunities for new applications, advertising models, marketing approaches, etc. etc.

Yahoo Japan brings the web to HD-TVs

Japan is a leading producer of TVs. Everyone knows that. Also, everyone heard a lot of marketing bla-bla in the last years about "merging technologies", "bridging digital gaps in the living room" and, of course, browsing the web on TVs. Obviously, this will be the case one day.

And Japan might be on the forefront of this development. And people here really mean it. In September, a high definition video-on-demand service was launched on the Japanese web TV site acTVila (Japanese only). acTVila is backed by the Japanese government, Sony, Matsushita, Sharp, Hitachi and Toshiba.

Screenshot: acTVila home page


Yahoo aims for HD TV
Now, Yahoo Japan is aiming specifically at the HD TV market. The company plans to launch an Internet portal designed for display on HD televisions as early as this Japanese fiscal year (ending March 31st, 2008).

Yahoo is working together with electronics giant Sharp on "Yahoo! HD for AQUOS" for big-screen TVs in "full HD"(1.980x1.080 resolution).

I saw a demonstration myself at CEATEC in Tokyo 2 weeks ago. The companies displayed selected content from Yahoo Japan's web site on a Sharp Aquos HD-TV. The content could be browsed smoothly by using an Aquos remote controller.

Now, displaying photos, maps, restaurant info etc. from Yahoo Japan's own web site on a large TV screen might make sense but it doesn't sound too sexy (for screen shots and technical mumbo jumbo, please click here).

However, this is only a first step. In an obvious second move, Sharp and Yahoo will add video distribution to the service later. Does this mean Japanese users will be able to watch Joost on their HD-TVs soon?

The companies are also hinting at integrating social networks and instant messaging as a third step! As of now, its unclear if this plan includes Yahoo-only services like Yahoo 360 or if there will be Facebook or MySpace in HD.

Interesting prospects but I am not sure if users want to browse the web on their TV sets in the first place. However, Yahoo Japan, Sharp and those technology-crazy Japanese people: This is one combination that might work. Accordingly, Yahoo Japan plans to acquire no less than 1 million users per month by the end of next year. I will keep you posted on this topic.

Yahoo Japan rules the Japanese internet
In Japan, Yahoo is by far the most popular web site. Some people even claim Yahoo Japan is the Japanese internet.

The company is controlling some 65% of the search market here. The Yahoo portal had 41.1 million uniques in August 2007 while Google Japan only had 30.9 million. The ROC in the last 5 years is 43% annually on average. Sales climbed 47% to 1.8 billion USD last year and profits surged a whopping 59% annually since 2001.

Interestingly, Japanese telecommunications giant Softbank holds 41% of Yahoo Japan while Yahoo itself controls 34% and is thus a minor shareholder!

Update: Concept of KDDI's DVD Downloading and Burning Service

Well, KDDI's DVD service is now online.

Users outside Japan are blocked out. I registered for the service but as a movie and DVD fan, I will probably never need it.

Downloading DVDs might be interesting for Japanese customers in rural areas with no rental shops though.

Anyway, let me show you how the service works in 3 steps.

Step 1:
Check out the following screenshot of the starting page.


The flash-based center of the starting page features the "Tsunagari Mappu" which means "connection map". If you click on one of the covers, you reach step 2.

Step 2:
In the next page, you can see alternative movies similar to the one chosen in step 1. If you are still happy with the title chosen, you can click on the button in orange under the DVD's cover on the right.


Step 3:
The final page features movie details like length, staff, cast etc. The usual stuff.


Full Metal Jacket costs 1,029 Yen (9 USD/6,30 Euros) to download. The normal retail price of this particular title is 3-4 times higher. However, depending on how long you rent the movie, rental fees are about half the price.

In addition, you have to download the KDDI DVD Burning software. It is free but a hassle nonetheless.

It will be interesting to see if Japanese customers like this concept especially in the light of KDDI being the first company in Japan to come up with this idea.

New service makes use of the fastet Internet structure in the world

In terms of speed, Japan clearly boasts the best Internet structure in the world. The median download speed over here is 61 mbps per second. Even Web wunderkind South Korea is trailing with 46 mbps. The number for the USA is staggering: 2 mbps (!), according to a recent report in the Washington Post.

The newspaper even fears that in the future Americans will have a very hard time catching up with broadband service in this country which is backed by strong political support.

Japanese IT and telecommunications giant KDDI now makes use of Japan's web infrastructure. The company announced Tuesday it will introduce a new service allowing customers to burn DVD contents which are downloadable from the Internet.

KDDI calls this concept "DVD Burning Service" (*cough*). The tentative starting page will change tomorrow. As of now, it only features a video explaining the new service in Japanese (click the big button on the bottom).

Contents include movies, Anime and TV drama shows. Prices will vary and start from just 500 Yen (4,36 USD/3,08 Euro).

KDDI will start the service tomorrow with 1,000 foreign and Japanese titles. The company said they plan to offer 5,000 titles by the end of March 2008.

To promote their new service, KDDI teamed up with Warner Bros. Japan (Japanese only) amongst others. Customers can download WB movies for a special discount price until the end of October 2007.

This might work not only because of the fast Internet connections in Japan. DVD prices in this country are obscene. Compared to the USA or Germany, you pay at least double the money.

New device to limit web access for Japanese children

Japanese toy and entertainment giant Bandai released a new product past Friday.

With this gadget -which is basically just a special kind of USB stick- parents can make sure their kids do not surf "dangerous" web sites anymore. The stick is 9 centimeters long and is called "Pasokon Kids Key" (Pasokon is the Japanese abbrevation of the term "Personal Computer"). It costs 3,480 Yen (30 USD).

Pictures of the device can be found here (descriptions in Japanese only). Its design features Disney characters like Mickey Mouse and Winnie the Pooh. Disney is very popular in Japan, too.

After inserting the key, the PC will change into a "kids mode". Children then can access the Internet only through a specially designed portal. Actually the whole OS is simplified, i.e. less and bigger buttons are displayed.

The so-called "i-Filter" makes sure kids only access sites viewed suitable for them. It is free for use for the first 90 days after which a small monthly fee is charged.

Casio releases new digicam optimized for Youtube

The Japanese love Youtube, especially since the company fully localized its site a couple of weeks ago.

Casio recently introduced a new digital camera of its Exilim series (EX-S880) which lets you upload videos automatically to the video sharing site. It is already available in the west as well (namely in the US and Europe).

Casio calls the special function "Youtube Capture video mode" (640x480 pixels, 30fps, MPEG-4 video). It enables users to circumvent Youtube's uploading procedure through an application delivered with the camera.

PC World tested the digicam this Wednesday and came up with a mixed review. Apparently, it is a must-get for Youtube maniacs only.

But I don't think it is a bad idea since development of the software sure wasn't that complicated. I wouldn't be surprised to this feature in future releases of other makers as well.

Here you can see the Ex-S880 in action:


If you can't see the video, please click here.