Here is a service that represents how much care Japanese people take in the punctuality of trains.
Japan, Tokyo-based ekitan & Co., Ltd., which provides public transportation information services on its Web site, announced Wednesday that it has upgraded its “Ekitan Express (Traffic Information)” application for the iPhone/iPod touch by adding a background notification feature.
The upgrade is for making the application adaptive to the Push Notification Service implemented on the iPhone OS 3.0.
The added feature will show the number of pieces of the latest traffic information on your iPhone/iPod touch at a regular time interval without invoking the application.
The information can include routes of JR, private railroad, subway, and others as you like.
The application is available at ¥315 until next upgrade.
Fri July 31, 2009
Ekitan pushes transportation information to iPhone/iPod touch
Thu July 30, 2009
Japan's equivalent of FCC is to be established?
The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which is deemed to possibly seize the reins of government after this coming general election, considers divorcing the public administration concerning broadcasting and communications from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) as one of its policies.
Specifically, the DPJ plans to establish an independent administrative commission, what is called the Japanese version of FCC, and transfer the public administration to it.
Wed July 29, 2009
DPJ promises decriminalization of election campaign on the Net
The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) on Monday released its manifesto for the general election due on August 30.
The manifesto includes decriminalization of election campaigns conducted on the Internet.
Changing election-related content on a website of political parties or candidates during an election period is prohibited by the Public Officers Election Law in existence in Japan.
Tue July 28, 2009
Survival in digitization of TV in Japan (37)--600,000 units of chideji tuners are procured
The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) and one of the groups under the MIC that are supporting the promotion of chideji, or terrestrial digital TV broadcasting, announced on July 23 that they have begun to publicly seek chideji tuner suppliers.
Two suppliers will be selected on a competitive open bidding system, who are expected to deliver 600,000 units of barebones chideji tuners that will be provided to some of the households receiving total exemption from NHK (Nippon Hoso Kokai: Japan Broadcasting Corp.) viewing fee.
Mon July 27, 2009
Online-sent scent (27)--Scent of wind
Do you sniff out something in a breeze?
Season, rain coming soon, flower coming out?
How wonderful it would be that a PC would send such a kind of breeze to you through the Internet!
Sun July 26, 2009
Survival in digitization of TV in Japan (36)--Just two years away
You have 728 days to prepare for the transition.
With the complete transition from analog to digital terrestrial television broadcasting just two years away, a promotion campaign was held on July 24 in Japan by some of the stakeholders, including the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), broadcasters, and home appliance manufacturers.
Sat July 25, 2009
Alico Japan's customer information leaked out (1)
Alico (American life insurance company) Japan announced Thursday that it is possible that some of its customer information has leaked out.
Up to 110 thousand pieces of the information were possibly leaked, said Alico Japan.
Fri July 24, 2009
Wi-Fi-enabled microSD card to be launched
KDDI Corp. exhibited mock-up Wi-Fi-enabled microSD cards on July 22 at the Wireless Japan 2009 conference held in Tokyo, Japan.
The microSD cards will enable a cellphone to send/receive data via a Wi-Fi access point even if the cellphone doesn't have Wi-Fi features embedded in itself.
Thu July 23, 2009
Survival in digitization of TV in Japan (35)--DTV airwaves relayed by millimetric-wave for apartment house
SHARP Corp. announced on July 13 that it has created an outdoor-installed module that relays digital terrestrial/BS/CS TV airwaves by means of millimetric-wave.
Using the module, DX ANTENNA Co., Ltd. has developed a digital TV relay system and began to accept orders of the system that day.
In the system, an antenna installed on the roof of a building like an apartment house receives the TV airwaves from stations and wirelessly relays them to the dedicated receiver installed on the balcony of each apartment.
Wed July 22, 2009
Total solar eclipse to be streamed live on the Net
The total solar eclipse that can be seen in Japan on July 22--for the first time during the last 46 years--will be streamed live on the NHK (Nippon Hoso Kokai: Japan Broadcasting Corp.) Online website.
The eclipse will occur approximately between 9:35am and 0:22pm JST.
Tue July 21, 2009
Japanese people consider the Net dangerous too much?
Japanese people are most concerned about the Internet security among the seven countries' people: Japan, the U.S., the U.K., South Korea, Singapore, Denmark, and Sweden.
The concern about the Internet security held by Japanese people was revealed in the result of the survey the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) conducted in February and March this year.
Mon July 20, 2009
Online-sent scent (26)--Do scents make you feel cool?
It is in the mid of summer now in Japan; terribly humid!
What scents will make you feel cooler?
Why don't you download that scent from the Net?
Is that kind of Net referred to as a cloud?
Sun July 19, 2009
Stickam Japan gets on Android
Tokyo, Japan-based company E-Times Technologies, which operates the photo/video/music sharing website Stickam Japan, has released its Google Android application.
The application allows the user to view content on Stickam Japan and is available from Android Market.
Sat July 18, 2009
Survival in digitization of TV in Japan (34)--IPTV on NGN covers Hyogo and Kyoto
NTT Plala Inc. and I-Cast, Inc. announced Thursday that it will begin to relay terrestrial digital TV broadcasts in Hyogo and Kyoto Prefectures through their IPTV service Hikari TV on the NGN platform Flet's Hikari Next on May 25.
NTT Plala and I-Cast have begun that in Osaka, Tokyo, Aichi, Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama Prefectures so far.
Fri July 17, 2009
3D theatrical live-action film on satellite TV
SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation announced Wednesday that it will broadcast a 3D theatrical live-action film in August in Japan.
The film “Journey to the Center of the Earth--3D Japanese-dubbed version” can be viewed by subscribers to the SKY Perfect TV! HD or SKY Perfect TV! e2 service on the pay-per-view basis: the film is priced at ¥630.
The subscribers will need to ask for special glasses to watch the film that is scheduled to broadcast on August 18 and 25, four times on each day.
Thu July 16, 2009
Google Japan provides election-related information (2)--Will candidates answer questions?
Google Japan's new platform where voters interact with politicians, Qs & As for Future, allows a Google account holder to post a question to a candidate running for this coming general election, political party, or political group.
Among the posted questions, five ones will be selected by poll.
Then Google Japan will call for the candidates, political parties, or political groups to answer the questions.
They can post their answers on YouTube by their own volition.
Wed July 15, 2009
Google Japan provides election-related information (1)--Following an American style
On July 13, Google Japan Inc. launched its Select Future 2009 project to provide easy-to-understand information related to the general election that is expected on August 30.
As the first step of the project, Google Japan has implemented a platform where voters interact with politicians.
The platform is dubbed “Qs & As for Future.”
Tue July 14, 2009
More than 25 million bloggers in Japan
There were about 26.95 million people blogging in Japan as of the end of January this year, according to the survey conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC).
The MIC says the bloggers generated a ¥16 billion market in FY2008.
Mon July 13, 2009
Online-sent scent (25)--Appropriate scents on the phone
What kind of scent do you want to send online while talking on the phone?
Flowers, perfume, or something else?
Does that depend on who you are talking to on the phone?
Sun July 12, 2009
PC and cellphone work together for continuous video play
SkillUpJapan Corporation, a digital content distribution platform provider, announced on July 10 that it has implemented video delivery features for cellphone on its PaaS (platform as a service)-based video distribution platform ULIZA.
One of the features, Play Anywhere, allows you to play a video on your DoCoMo cellphone which you have quit viewing halfway on PC and vice versa.
