Japan’s NTT DoCoMo, the country’s biggest mobile phone subscriber with over 50 million subscribers, is considering fully entering the American cell phone market – as early as next year. Various Japanese media are reporting that the company plans to offer phones featuring DoCoMo’s proprietary mobile web service “i-mode” in the USA (the picture shows phones from their Japanese summer line-up).
Nokia will create its own cellphone service in Japan, piggybacking on NTT Docomo’s infrastructure there. That’s right, it’ll be a VMNO. (Those have done so well…) It’s scheduled to launch in the springtime.
Nokia is expected to use the service to market its high-end phones, presumably including its N96.
Let’s be honest. We’ve seen this coming for more than a month now and the Financial Times is reporting that VM and Helio could announce sometime this week that the two MVNOs will merge leaving SK Telecom with a 20 percent stake. There have been rumors floating around that Helio stores will shut their doors in an effort to cut costs, which we haven’t been able to confirm nor deny, but we’re pretty sure they’re true. We’re unsure which stores will close, but I’d like to think that the NYC store that’s 200 meters away from me will remain open. We’ll have to wait and see, though. Now that all this merger nonsense is over with, I’d like for Helio to release OZ2.
Reuters is also reporting on this matter. Sources say Helio will be absorbed into the Virgin Mobile brand. Maybe we won’t see OZ2 with the backlit Helio name. :( I guess I’m ok with Virgin.
Yama hama, look what Virgin Mobile just did. Starting July 1st you can get on the company’s new “Totally Unlimited” plan for $79.99 per month (no contract required), which includes unlimited voice minutes. For $10 more per month, you can get “Unlimited Text & Messaging, with texting, IM, email and picture messages.” If you’re a big talker and you don’t require a smartphone or PDA phone for more robust data services, this is a hell of a deal.
Ball’s in your court now, AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, and T-Mobile. Unlimited voice plans from all the major carriers start at $99 per month, with a two-year contract required.
Full release after the jump…
We’ve heard weirder rumors about the future of Helio, our favorite MVNO, but this one’s got some interesting aspects to it. The buzz is that Virgin Mobile is looking to pick up Helio and merge the services, and in some ways the idea makes sense.
Virgin is the leading MVNO for low-end handsets. They sell utilitarian phones and services to people who just make calls. You can buy their gear at 7/11. What it doesn’t have is a high-end or smartphone product line for sophisticated users.
Helio is all high-end, with data-centric handsets and interactive features for power users. What it doesn’t have are low-end offerings or good distribution.
Thus, they would be a good match. But will it happen? SK Telecom still owns Helio and has the cash to keep it afloat as long as it wants, but it can’t buy Helio’s way into the stores. So will the merger happen? We’ll see, but don’t count it out, it’s an interesting idea from many angles.
[Please see the update at the end of this post.]
According to VentureBeat’s Matt Marshall, the US division of Virgin Mobile is considering the layoffs in the face of poor stock performance. Those affected would come mostly from the Northern California offices in Walnut Creek along with some marketing and sales people in New Jersey.
Biggs is working on a longer piece on what exactly these folks have to offer, but this happens to be one of the services. We’re not entirely sure how it works, but the short demo explains what’s possible. You’re basically selling minutes to people while you trigger the calls. Imagine being on a beach or in a developing country. To go to the “minutes broker” who charges you 50 whatevers for 5 minutes to the US. He triggers a call to your local phone and to the number in the US and both phones ring. It’s a great way to add long distance service to places where it is prohibitively expensive or inconvenient.
Look what I found today. The first official pics of the Mysto from Helio. The CDMA version of the U600, of course. Ain’t she a beaut? No word on specs or release date, but it’ll run $150. Can’t wait for this slick slider to make its way into my hands. Wondering where I found this gem? I’ll never tell.
As if I need another reason to not leave the couch this winter other than it being cold. Helio has gone and added a TV Guide app and I feel myself getting squishier. A 30-day rental is $2.99 and you can even forward TV listings to a friend in case you think they’re interested in watching ___________ (Some dumb show only you like. Heh.). A few more screen shots after the jump. Thanks, Helio. Will you pay for my Weight Watchers in the Spring?
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I told you about File Viewer a few months ago. I’ve been patiently waiting and it was worth it. It’s now here and it’s free, but only for the Ocean. File Viewer works in conjunction with MME and allows you to view all Microsoft Office documents as well as HTML, PDF, TXT and an array of images. You can even check files from your microSD card. I haven’t tested it all out, but so far so good.
Image ganked from Heliocity because I’m too lazy to get screen caps from my Ocean.
As if the refreshed Oceans and $99 all-in-one plan weren’t enough, the MVNO of choice has slashed $50 off all handsets for new members. That means a brand new Ocean is $199, the thinnest flip on the market, Fin, is $79 and the Heat is FREE. Need I say more?
I love my Ocean. Matt lives and dies by the Ocean. It’s a great phone and does everything one needs. Well, not everything. It doesn’t get Matt laid or anything, but I think you know where I’m going. Maybe you’re already with Helio and you want some friends to migrate over because you’re a greedy bastard and want the free months of service. I wouldn’t blame you. Their plans are cheap and Sprint has great coverage (from my experience) so what more could you ask for? The newly refreshed Ocean’s are a mere $99 and unlimited minutes and data is currently $99. That’s cheap. Way cheap and you know it. It makes for a perfect gift for the holidays, parental units. Your kids will love you for it and they’ll certainly use it more than they will that ugly sweater you have hidden in the closet, which they’ve already found.
Helio Refreshed [via Heliocity]
As you may have heard from your Fairy Godmother, Disney Mobile is now kaput. The service is essentially dead and your phone, complete with Minnie, Mickey, or Wee Heinrich, a misguided pre-war character that didn’t win Disney many friends in the international community.
What does this mean for the poor folks who bought the phones? Well, they’ll reimburse you and/or you’ll still be billed until December 31, 2007, at which time Peter Pan will come and snatch your phone — and innocence — away. You can also transfer your Disney number to another non-Disney phone and hopefully this whole branded MVNO idea has died it’s rightful death.
