Mobile TV phone shipments surpass 11m in Japan

Built-in TV tuners seem to be the next messiah for mobile handset manufacturers in Japan. Similar to cameras a few years ago, they are driving the handset sales up and becoming a default feature for new models. For instance, in July, 1.87 million TV phones were shipped, accounting for 36.6% of overall domestic shipments, according to the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association. Overall, the installed base of cell phones with built-in one-seg TV tuners reached 11.77 million units by the end of July. Not to mention that the first shipments of one-seg phones just started in April 2006. What makes them so popular? First of all, getting the broadcast TV programs is free for handset users. Secondly, the quality of the reception and clarity of the picture is exceptionally good in most cases. These are the founding blocks to build a successful service. The strong sales of Sharp’s Aquos-branded TV phones even propelled the maker to the top market position. BCN Inc., a research company for information-technology products, estimates that Sharp accounted for 25.1% of the market share in the July-August period, nearly twice more of the 12.9% share held by second-ranked Panasonic.
Source: Asahi.com