Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket

Denn die Rakuten Inc, die alle Aktivitäten außerhalb des Finanz- und Versicherungssektors enthält, hat bei einer Bilanzsumme von 2461,3 billion (in deutscher Sprache = Milliarden) JPY immerhin ein Eigenkapital von 493,9 billion JPY – was mit ca. 20% weit über den im Asahi-Artikel (siehe # 6398) angeführten 5% liegt. Und durch die jüngste Kapitelerhöhung mit der Zufuhr von ca. 2,25 Milliarden Dollar steigt er auf fast 30% - für japanische EK-Quoten schon eine gute Zahl.

global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/
20Q4PPT_E.pdf

Rakuten Bank weist bei einer Bilanzsumme von 5745,8 Billionen JPY ein EK von 168,6 Billionen JPY auf, Rakuten Card weist bei einer Bilanzsumme von 2713,3 Billionen JPY ein EK von 288,6 Billionen Yen und Rakuten Securites bei einer Bilanzsumme von 2934,7 Billionen Yen ein EK von 110,5 Billion Yen.

global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/
20Q4PPT_E.pdf

Das sind die im Bankbereich üblichen niedrigen EK-Quoten, die zudem von Risikobehaftung der durchgeführten Bankgeschäfte abhängen, die bis auf das Kreditkartengeschäft bei Rakuten m.E. niedrig sein dürften.

Dass die Addition dieser Zahlen zu den Zahlen von Rakuten Inc aus meinem letzten Posting wenig Sinn macht, um eine Gesamt-EK-Quote zu errechen, wie das Asahi in ihrem Artikel gemacht hat, dürfte m.E. aber einleuchtend sein.

Fakt ist allerdings auch, dass sich zumindest in den letzten Jahren Rakuten keine Mühe damit gemacht hat, diese sicher komplexen Zusammenhänge zu erklären, weil man eine Kapitalerhöhung wohl nicht im Sinn hatte - denn sonst wäre der Kurs m.E. momentan höher als die 1145 Yen gewesen, als man dann doch eine praktiziert hat.

Rakuten shares jump 24% on Japan Post, Tencent backing

TOKYO (Reuters) - Rakuten Inc's shares jumped as much as 24% on Monday after the Japanese e-commerce firm said it would raise $2.2 billion through a stake sale to companies including Japan Post and Tencent.

Rakuten shares were trading up 18% at 1,471 yen at 02:28 GMT - the biggest rise in 17 years - after earlier hitting a daily limit high of 1,545 yen. That brings Rakuten's share gain from Friday to almost 30% and lifts its market cap to 2.1 trillion yen ($19.4 billion).

The deal is a funding injection for Rakuten's investments in logistics, where it is competing with Amazon and SoftBank's newly bulked-up internet business, and in mobile, where it is taking on the three incumbent carriers.

"Rakuten could receive significant help from the expert in logistics services," Jefferies analyst Hiroko Sato wrote in a note, referring to Japan Post, which operates 24,000 post offices nationwide.
The mobile business "has been a huge drag on its valuations and earnings for a while now but one which will see costs peak this term," wrote Asymmetric Advisors analyst Amir Anvarzadeh in a note.
Investors also warmed to potential partnerships with backers Tencent, the world's largest gaming company, and Walmart, the world's largest retailer.

finance.yahoo.com/news/...shares-jump-24-japan-034238001.html

Hiroshi Mikitani, Rakuten’s founder, chairman and chief executive, told CNBC on Monday that his company is “growing very fast — even at this size — and we need more capital for the growth.”
He explained that Rakuten and Japan Post are jointly developing capabilities in artificial intelligence to make deliveries — especially in rural areas — more efficient. The two companies could also collaborate on fintech, said Mikitani.

Breaking into China’s market

Meanwhile, the tie-up with Tencent marks another attempt by Rakuten to penetrate the Chinese market. Mikitani said his company had a failed partnership with Chinese internet giant Baidu in the past.

“I need to be very honest and China has been a very difficult market for us to penetrate,” he told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”

“Now with a partnership with Tencent, we have a channel to export Japanese products to Chinese market, as well as export Japanese content … to the Chinese market as well,” he added.

lenexnews.com/...jump-20-after-stake-sale-to-walmart-tencent/

gehandelt:

https://www.ariva.de/rakuten-aktie/kurs

Na toll und ich hab in meiner Blödheit Freitag noch schnell alles mit Mini Gewinn verkauft. Schnell mal 900 EUR durch die Lappen gegangen. Zefix!!

Japan Post Group and Rakuten Group announce business partnership
By HAZEL KING March 16, 2021

Japan Post Group and Rakuten, a Japanese e-commerce and retail company, have signed a business alliance agreement that will see them collaborate in a number of fields including logistics, mobile and digital transformation.

According to the companies, this new capital and business alliance will enable them to maximize synergies by effectively leveraging the business resources and expertise of both groups to provide greater convenience for customers, give back to local communities, and grow their businesses.

Both Groups will consider business alliance collaboration on the items below:

...group-and-rakuten-group-announce-business-partnership.html

Tokyo, March 12, 2021 – Japan Post Holdings Co.,Ltd., Japan Post Co., Ltd. and Rakuten, Inc. today signed a business alliance agreement to strengthen their collaborations across a range of fields, including logistics, mobile, digital transformation and more.

Both Groups will continue to explore the broader potential for deepening their collaborative relationship.

Business alliance overview

Both Groups will consider business alliance collaboration on the items below:

Logistics
Creation of shared logistics centers
Creation of shared delivery and pick-up systems
Sharing of data held by Japan Post and Rakuten
Joint commercialization of digital transformation platform for logistics, including the establishment of a new company
Collaborations and initiatives between Japan Post and Rakuten to expand usage of Rakuten Fulfillment Centers and Japan Post's "Yu-Pack"  parcels

Mobile
Utilization of post office event space to create customer counters to accept new signup applications for Rakuten Mobile and other functions
Utilization of Japan Post Group's delivery network to conduct marketing initiatives

Digital transformation
Dispatch of digital transformation specialists from Rakuten Group to Japan Post Group
Additional support from Rakuten Group to support the digital transformation of Japan Post Group

Additionally, both Groups will consider the launch of new business alliances on the following items:

Financial services
Collaboration in cashless payments and other fields
Collaboration in the insurance field

E-commerce
Collaboration on product sales

In addition to the items outlined above, both Groups will discuss and consider other strategic collaborations that contribute to increased corporate value.

global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2021/0312_02.html

Mikitani highlighted that the new potential for partnering with Tencent opens a broad portfolio of opportunities, from digital entertainment, including online games, to e-commerce with Rakuten.
“Rakuten has built a vibrant ecosystem through its membership and loyalty program, extending its unrivalled strength from e-commerce to FinTech and digital content. Tencent shares Rakuten’s aspiration of creating value through innovation and empowerment for users and partners,” Martin Lau, Executive Director and President, Tencent Holdings, said in a press statement.

Lau added that Tencent are excited to invest in Rakuten, supporting its evolution into a global innovation leader. “We look forward to pursuing strategic cooperation across activities including digital entertainment and e-commerce, creating value for users and building the Internet ecosystem together,” the Tencent president noted.

It is worth mentioning that Walmart’s involvement in the Rakuten deals comes just briefly following its sale of 85 percent of its shares in Japan’s largest supermarket chains Seiyu. Thus, proving that the American retailer is still committed to expand its presence within the country.
“Around the world, we’re making strategic equity investments to enable Walmart to benefit from future growth in a rapidly changing global retail environment,” said Judith McKenna, President and CEO of Walmart International, in a statement.

www.insidetelecom.com/...post-acquire-13-of-troubled-rakuten/

www.finanzen.net/video/...samsung_sdi_rakuten-video_82160@bli

Outraged-by-whatsapps-privacy-update-vibers-ceo-calls-on-users-to­-seek-alternatives

www.lankabusinessnews.com/...s-on-users-to-seek-alternatives/

“Airspan has always been a champion of RAN disaggregation whether it be from small cells to macro or software to hardware, we are steadfast in our commitment to innovate and are honored to be a part of something truly special with Rakuten Mobile,” said Eric Stonestrom, President and Chief Executive Officer of Airspan Networks.

Airspan and Rakuten Mobile intend to further jointly develop next generation communications and collaboration technologies to enable operators and end user customers to simplify, accelerate and expand their offerings, while generating new revenue streams.

corp.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/english/news/press/2021/0317_01/

1&1 Drillisch legt die letzten Details für den Aufbau seines 5G-Netzes fest. Ein Partner soll Rakuten aus Japan werden. Die Firma wirbt bereits Fachkräfte in Deutschland an.


Stephan Scheuer
15.03.2021 - 04:00 Uhr
Der Internetunternehmer Ralph Dommermuth will den Mobilfunk in Deutschland aufmischen. Die Wahl seiner Partner für den Netzausbau ist fast abgeschlossen, erfuhr das Handelsblatt. Unter anderem soll der japanische Netzbetreiber Rakuten Dommermuths Firma 1&1 Drillisch beim Netzausbau assistieren.

Die Japaner hatten in ihrer Heimat ein modernes 5G-Netz nach dem offenen Standard Open-Ran aufgebaut. Es soll als Vorbild für Deutschland dienen.

Rakuten ist derzeit dabei, Netzexperten von etablierten Anbietern wie Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, Telefónica oder spezialisierten Dienstleistern abzuwerben. „1&1 Drillisch verfolgt einen ähnlichen Ansatz wie Rakuten in Japan – auch unser 5G-Netz wird vollständig virtualisiert und auf Basis der Open-Ran-Technologie gebaut werden“, sagte eine Sprecherin des 1&1-Mutterkonzerns United Internet.

www.handelsblatt.com/technik/it-internet/...XlZYW6JLyJ36l-ap5

www.wallstreet-online.de/video/...-chartsignalen-heavytraderz

Meanwhile, they exhibit double-standard morality as Niamh Sweeney, Director, Policy for EMEA, WhatsApp, has stated on Twitter that users from Europe don't have to worry about their data being shared with Facebook, at least for advertisements. Doesn't it point out that users' data from the rest of the world does not significantly impact them because of the absence of any strict regulation like GDPR?

TBS: Does Viber ensure safety for its users and if yes, how?

DA: It is mentionable that Viber's policy does not differ from region to region. User privacy is essential, and Viber emphasises protecting their data. To that end, we provide E2EE (end-to-end encryption) to everyone worldwide, no matter where the user lives. Their conversations and information are not for sale. Our E2EE is by default.

The E2EE is a system communication that only can be read by the senders and the receivers. No one, not even the developers, can access the cryptographic keys that are needed to decrypt the messages. Viber's server works as an illiterate messenger to pass along the message, which can only be deciphered by the intended device – sender and receiver.

TBS: How instant messaging apps like Rakuten Viber generate revenue?  

DA: We have found multiple creative ways to generate revenue, and it has been working great for us. Unlike numerous other platforms, Viber's vital income sources are not advertisements, but instead, its business messaging. Various companies globally pay monthly fees to us to send messages to their subscribers. Those companies need to be verified by Viber to send any messages.  We also only get less than 20% income from advertisements. Viber will not collect any public data without the users' consent, and private messages are encrypted, so there is no way for anyone other than users to view the information.

TBS: What is Viber's next move for APAC region especially for Bangladesh?

DA: We are always striving hard to grow positively, and the process introduces new features tailored to the users' preferences. We are doing all these because we want to establish Viber as a 'lifetime app' for cross-sections of people so that they can communicate with their near and dear ones conveniently without any concern for privacy or any other thing.

Meanwhile, we empower organisations to join the communities and chatbots to interact with customers securely. Several entities, namely ICT Division, EBL, Bangladesh Red Crescent Society, UNICEF Bangladesh, and many more, have already created their chatbots to interact with their customers. Even during the pandemic, Viber has played its bit by collaborating with some organizations to disseminate critical information related to COVID-19.

Bangladesh is a very potential market with more and more people becoming dependent on technology for everyday activities and the government planning to build a Digital Bangladesh. We want to stay beside Bangladesh in this journey and be a part of the digital transformation the nation is going through. That's why we are focusing more on improving our app to keep up with the demands of the local market.  

www.tbsnews.net/feature/panorama/...-ceo-djamel-agaoua-215602

Rakuten has been focused on a very expensive (and moderately successful) global expansion effort through its "cash-back"e-commerce portal and Rakuten TV streaming platform, but has yet to tie the two together in a significant or innovative way. Now that it has an opportunity to leverage Tencent's content-commerce prowess — taking China as a starting point, Rakuten could apply what it learns from one of the best in the business to its global plans.

Tencent, like competitor Alibaba and archrival Bytedance, has made it a priority to fuse video with e-commerce, and the impetus for this was accelerated during the Covid-19 pandemic. To keep up with the competition, Tencent has been forced to boost video and commerce on WeChat, adding video accounts, expanding e-commerce, and adding livestreaming features.

Tencent has also shown itself adept at creating or cultivating content trends in areas such as gaming (via its Tencent Games, Riot Games and its stake in Epic Games), and music, through Tencent Music Entertainment (TME), which is expanding globally at lightning speed, and idol competition shows on Tencent Video that mint new stars.

The content-commerce industry didn’t exist when Rakuten last aimed at China back in 2012. Now, nothing is stopping Rakuten and Tencent — two deep-pocketed content powerhouses — from teaming up on e-commerce-enabled programs using the "Fourtry" model, perhaps with shows set in Japan (as the first season of "Fourtry" was) that highlight products from the country that can be seamlessly purchased while viewing, with both Rakuten and Tencent cashing in.

Another possible growth avenue for Rakuten comes by way of Bilibili, the massively popular platform beloved of China's Gen Z, which also boasts Tencent as its second-biggest shareholder with an 18 percent stake. Were Rakuten to get more access to Bilibili’s 202 million monthly active users (MAUs), this partnership could end up being a true industry bellwether."

jingdaily.com/...e-up-is-a-game-changer-for-content-commerce/

Rakuten Mobile added Airspan Networks’ virtual radio access network (vRAN) hardware and software platform on the Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP).

The deal will see Airspan include its OpenRANGE platform that is based on the open RAN specifications to the Rakuten platform. Airspan will also work with Rakuten on a go-to-market strategy for RCP and jointly sell the platform with Airspan’s offerings.

Airspan is one of a number of vendors working with Rakuten to power its virtualized mobile network in Japan. Other vendors include Altiostar, Cisco, Intel, Mavenir, NEC, Nokia, Red Hat, and Qualcomm.
Analysts have called out Airspan as being a potential acquisition target for larger vendors looking to get a hook into the burgeoning open RAN space.

Rakuten unveiled its RCP plans late last year. The platform is a combination of the operator’s various technical and intellectual property that it’s using to construct its software-centric network in Japan. It includes telco applications and software from different vendors, operating support and business support systems (OSS/BSS) to deal with billing and activation, edge computing, and virtual network management functions.

Rakuten began demonstrating the RCP platform in August and claims it reduces capex for mobile operators by 40% and opex by 30%. Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani, at the time, said the global market for a platform like RCP, including traditional network costs for mobile operators, reaches up to $375 billion annually.

www.sdxcentral.com/articles/news/...an-vran-into-rcp/2021/03/

Rakuten reached a new milestone when the total cumulative number of Rakuten Points issued exceeded two trillion in September 2020. Rakuten also launched the “Easy Point Investment by Rakuten Point Club” service in October 2018, which enabled members to invest their Rakuten Points by linking them with the base value of investment trusts available through Rakuten Securities, even without a brokerage account. The number of service users reached three million by November 2020.

global.rakuten.com/corp/news/update/2021/...rp%20ec%20fintech

India's ICT industry capable of developing 5G hardware, software architecture, says Rakuten

Danish Khan
Feb 26, 2021,

Indian ICT industry’s growing capabilities around hardware and software architecture development for 5G networks are allowing Japan’s Rakuten to expand its R&D presence in the country to build its Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP).

The company’s group CTO Tareq Amin said that India is also helping it globalize its platform and solutions.

Rakuten is expanding its research and development (R&D) footprint in India by doubling its workforce in Bangalore. It is also expanding its presence in Indore.

All three private Indian telcos are eyeing OpenRAN as a viable method to cut network-related costs and bring in more customisations as they upgrade their networks to 5G technology. They are in touch with various companies like NEC, Altiostar and Mavenir among others to adopt the new technology.

Read more at:
economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/...t&utm_campaign=cppst

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/...id1384764932?i=1000513547862

“Airspan has always been a champion of RAN disaggregation whether it be from small cells to macro or software to hardware, we are steadfast in our commitment to innovate and are honored to be a part of something truly special with Rakuten Mobile,” said Eric Stonestrom, President and Chief Executive Officer of Airspan Networks.

Airspan and Rakuten Mobile intend to further jointly develop next generation communications and collaboration technologies to enable operators and end user customers to simplify, accelerate and expand their offerings, while generating new revenue streams.

About Airspan

Airspan is a US-based 5G end-to-end, Open RAN hardware and software provider with a product portfolio spanning 150 patents granted and 94 patents pending. The company is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida and has global offices in London, Tel Aviv, Mumbai, and Tokyo.

www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1823882/...innings_ex99-1.htm

Influence your online customers with Rakuten Marketing

Alauddin Chowdhury
February 22, 2021

What is Rakuten Marketing?

Rakuten Marketing is an affiliate market service provider. The company is the largest wage earner for affiliate marketing networks on the internet. Rakuten Link share is now Rakuten Affiliate Network. The company was started in the year 1996 by Stephen Messer and Heidi Messer.

In 2005, Rakuten received Link to share for $425 million, making Link share an owned division of Rakuten, a shopping portal. Link share was later rebounded to Rakuten Affiliate Network in 2014. The network was ranked #1 by mThink for the 6th year in a row.

How does it work?

The benefit of working for a global organization like Rakuten Marketing is the opportunity to work with talented and knowledge-based colleagues, publishers, and advertisers worldwide.

Marketing in today’s world is complicated. Managing all consumer touchpoints requires working with vendors who can make it challenging at times. With the ever-evolving and ever-expanding technology landscape, consumers of today have no outer limit. All this makes it fantastic for brands.
The mission is to empower the clients with solutions beyond the expectation of superior technology and service to consumer-centric insights.

With so many offices worldwide, the global marketing services include search, mobile, affiliate, display, and attribution. The merger of Link share, Paid Search, Media Forge, Pop shops, DC Storm under Rakuten Affiliate Network meant offering the highest level of services combined with simplifying what has become increasingly sophisticated marketing space.

webappick.com/...our-online-customers-with-rakuten-marketing/

Vorurteile wiederholt, die m.E. nicht zutreffen:

Vergiss Amazon! Lerne über Coupang und 5 weitere E-Commerce-Aktien weltweit

15.03.21, 10:18 Fool.de

Japans Amazon: Rakuten

Rakuten gilt schon seit einem Vierteljahrhundert als einer der Hauptrivalen von Amazon und hat in den letzten Jahren als Trikotsponsor des FC Barcelona auf sich aufmerksam gemacht. Sowohl in den USA als auch in Japan streiten die beiden um Marktanteile, wobei Amazon in beiden Fällen bisher die Oberhand behielt.

Die Onlineportale sind als Club organisiert, wobei Mitglieder über beliebte Shops von Drittanbietern Zugriff auf Deals bekommen und dabei Punkte sammeln können. Weltweit haben sich 1,4 Mrd. Mitglieder dafür registriert.

Das Wachstum im Pandemiejahr war vergleichsweise schwach. Die Aktie läuft seit Längerem eher seitwärts und die Marktkapitalisierung der E-Commerce-Aktie von rund 16 Mrd. US-Dollar reflektiert die Zweifel am Geschäftsmodell. Nun soll eine Geldspritze im Umfang von 2,2 Mrd. US-Dollar dabei helfen, den Service aufzurüsten und verlorenes Terrain zurückzuerobern.

www.onvista.de/news/...e-e-commerce-aktien-weltweit-441756263

direkt mit Amazon, wie die nachstehende Übersicht unter der folgenden Adresse zeigt (wenn sie das vor vielen Jahren einmal vorhatten, ist das uralter Schnee von gestern):

www.rakuten.us/

Indirekte Konkurrenzelemente, aber auch Elemente der Zusammenarbeit  gibt es natürlich, bei Rakuten Reward und Rakuten SuperLogistics überwiegen sogar m.E. eher die Zusammenarbeitselemente

Zählweise, ob man Rakuten oder Amazon Japan als führend bezeichnet, denn Rakuten ist sehr viel breiter aufgestellt.

Aber selbst beim E-Commerce im engeren Sinn, ist irgendeine Führung von Amazon fraglich, denn Amazon agiert sowohl als direkter Verkäufer als auch als Marktplatz. Wenn man jetzt Umsätze ermittelt, addiert man Verkaufserlöse mit niedriger Wertschöpfung, da hier der Wareneinkauf abgezogen werden muss, mit Provisionserlösen vom Marktplatz mit hoher Wertschöpfung, da ein Wareneinsatz entfällt.  Rakuten agiert fast nur als Marktplatz und hat daher fast ausschließlich Provisionserlöse. Vergleichen kann man daher eigentlich nur Warenwerte, die über sie laufen, wobei man auch noch ausgleichen muss, dass Amazon Japan selbst transportiert (und das in die Warenpreise eingeht), Rakuten aber nur teilweise.