Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket

Japanese mobile operator Rakuten Mobile said its 4G network already reaches 80% of the country’s population, with plans to reach 96% this summer.

In a conference call with investors, Rakuten Mobile’s President Yoshihisa Yamada said that the company has already reached limited 5G services in all prefectures as of the end of March.

“Rakuten Mobile continues to offer more attractive services for all customers and is working to further expand its customer base. At the same time, we are rapidly expanding our own network area so that users can experience the benefits of unlimited data usage,” the executive said.

“In April, we received additional 5G spectrum from the government. This will enable us to expand our 5G service coverage and accelerate deployment over 5G service to mobile users,” Yamada added.

As of May 11, Rakuten Mobile had 4.1 million applications for service, a slight increase from the 3.9 million announced one month earlier.

The executive also said that Rakuten Mobile aims to achieve breakeven in fiscal year 2023.

Under the terms of the deal, Rakuten Mobile and NEC said they will develop the containerized SA 5G mobile core to be made available on the Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP).

Rakuten’s platform contains all the elements of the Rakuten Mobile network, including telco applications and software from multiple vendors, OSS and BSS systems handling customer billing and activation systems, in addition to edge computing and virtual network management functions.

RCP is aimed at offering solutions and services for the deployment of virtualized networks at speed and low cost by telecom companies, enterprises and governments around the world, the telco said.

www.ict-nn.com/...4g-network-reaches-80-of-japans-population/

May 19, 2021,08:00am

Rakuten Viki’s Slate Of Original Productions Continues To Grow

Joan MacDonald
Contributor

I'm a journalist fascinated by Korean drama and film.

K-drama originals have become a selling point on several international streaming platforms, including Netflix and IQIYI, and will soon debut on Apple TV, none of which are originally based in Korea. Viki, a US-based platform has been streaming Asian content since 2007 and was one of the first non-Korean platforms to produce original Korean content. They have done so for the last five years through international partnerships with production companies, TV networks, distributors and investors.

“The platform’s more than 100 originals include mini-series dramas, traditional series dramas that simulcast on TV Networks, short/mid-form web dramas, and variety/entertainment shows,” said Sarah Kim, Viki’s SVP content business and regional general manager, Asia.

Viki, which was acquired by the Japanese entertainment giant Rakuten in 2013, features originals that generally fall into two categories. One category is where the company makes an investment at the development stage for the titles, which are co-produced by the platform and exclusive to them. Another type is where the platform secures full exclusivity in the regions that are their major markets and acquires the right to associate, display and promote the production as a Viki Original.

www.forbes.com/sites/joanmacdonald/2021/...w/?sh=27fe580c23d0

MAY 21, 2021 09.12 EUROPE/LONDON BY CHRIS DZIADUL

Filmstream will initially be available in 42 European countries, including the UK, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Sweden. Viewers will be able to watch Filmstream on Rakuten Smart TV app through Samsung and LG Smart TV devices for free.

Commenting on the development, Berkin Ecevit, senior director of business development and sales at SPI International, said: “We are very excited to partner with Rakuten TV, a key partner that shares our vision of making the discovery of quality content easier for the global audience through combining different business models.

“Developed with the consumer at the center like all of our products and content solutions, Filmstream’s ad-supported proposition will definitely enhance Rakuten TV’s offering and allow viewers to discover some of the best world cinema movies in one place with no additional commitment required”.

www.broadbandtvnews.com/2021/05/21/...ams-up-with-rakuten-tv/

SPI inks Rakuten TV carriage deal for Filmstream

21 May 2021

Making the ad-based digital films service now available in 42 European countries, global media company SPI International has announced the launch of Filmstream on the Rakuten TV video-on-demand platform.

Ad-supported Filmstream provides a curated selection of critically-acclaimed independent and foreign language movies from all around the world.

Viewers in countries, including the UK, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Sweden will be able to watch Filmstream on the Rakuten Smart TV app for free through Smart TV devices, initially Samsung and LG Smart TV devices.

Read more: SPI inks Rakuten TV carriage deal for Filmstream | Deals | News | Rapid TV News www.rapidtvnews.com/2021052160514/...tream.html#ixzz6vXIhYx5G

Rakuten TV präsentiert über 90 kostenlose lineare Kanäle und bietet die beste globale und lokale Unterhaltung in ganz Europa

04.27.2021

rakutenadvertising.com/de-de/...-unterhaltung-in-ganz-europa/

By Harry Baldock, Total Telecom

Wednesday 19 May 21

The two Japanese companies are well known for championing the disaggregated RAN technology and have now signed a deal to promote open RAN worldwide

In the last year and a half, Rakuten has launched its fully virtualised mobile network in Japan, launching 5G back in September 2020. Since then, the company has been hinting that it would be seeking to offer its Open RAN network platform to operators abroad.

Now, it seems that progress is being made towards promoting the operator’s Open RAN Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP), with Rakuten announcing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NEC to provide 5G and 4G radios and engineering services to global operators.

“NEC is already providing Rakuten Mobile with BSS/OSS, 5G RU and 5G core solutions for its revolutionary fully virtualized cloud native network. We hope to continue contributing to the expansion of the Rakuten Communications Platform as it rolls out around the globe,” explained NEC EVP Atsuo Kawamura.

NEC appears to be the main partner for the RCP, but Rakuten is also partnering with Fujitsu to develop Open RAN solutions as part of the platform.

www.totaltele.com/509697/...d-NEC-set-to-take-Open-RAN-global

These companies just might have the edge to take on the king.

7 Stocks That Could Be the Next Amazon

CONTRIBUTOR
Josh Enomoto InvestorPlace

MAR 30, 2021 5:01AM EDT

Japanese e-commerce firm Rakuten made some noise a few years ago when it ran a commercial about how to pronounce the brand name. An advertisement kiosk gave people money if they pronounced it correctly. The thing is, while none of them actually said it correctly, they were still rewarded for their attempts.

That’s neither here nor there, but I thought it was pretty funny. What really made news for Rakuten is that the company recently raised the equivalent of $2.1 billion from institutional investors Japan Post, Tencent and Walmart.

In theory, the various synergies should bolster Rakuten’s primary e-commerce business. As well, a partnership with Tencent could lead to opening channels for Japanese merchants in China. However, The Wall Street Journal doesn’t believe Rakuten is an Amazon killer because Rakuten’s move into the mobile industry could become a liability.

I think the WSJ makes a fair point. However, I’m still going to put RKUNY stock on this list of potential Amazon-beating stocks to buy because of its possible upside pathway. Mainly, I believe Asian companies stand a better chance of dominating Asian markets because of the nuances in eastern culture and customs.

www.nasdaq.com/articles/...ould-be-the-next-amazon-2021-03-30

In addition to a jump in quarterly financial results, the Japanese broker saw significant growth in results for the 12 months ended 31 March 2021. Rakuten Securities reported net operating revenue of approximately 75 billion yen for the 12 months ended 31 March 2021, which is a significant jump compared to 58 billion yen a year ago. For the last 12 months, the Japanese financial services provider reported a net income of 9.5 billion yen, compared to 7 billion yen in the 12 months ended 31 March 2020.

www.financemagnates.com/forex/brokers/...in-the-last-quarter/

Video on Demand Market to Rise at 14.8% CAGR and Reach USD 159.62 Billion by 2027; Netflix’s Collaboration with Sky TV will have a Massive Global Impact

Top Players in the global video on demand Market are Alphabet, Inc., Amazon Web Services, Inc., Apple, Inc., Catchplay, CinemaNow, Comcast Corporation, Eros International plc, Fandango Media, LLC, Filmdoo, Gulf DTH FZ LLC, Home Box Office, Inc., HOOQ, Icflix, Iflix, IndieFlix Group, Inc., Joyn GmbH, KWIKmotion, LeEco, Muvi LLC, Netflix, Inc., Rakuten, Inc., Roku, Inc., Tencent Video, Tving, Vivendi, VUDU, Inc., Walt Disney Company, Watcha Play, Youku Tudou, Inc.

www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/...Global-Impact.html

Industrial 5G Private Networks: A Golden Opportunity for System Integrators

Along with its many benefits to industrial manufacturing, one of characteristics of 5G Private Networks is that a network operator’sinvolvement is not mandatory in its deployment. 5G has the potential to fundamentally change the network supply chain and delivery model.This reshuffling of power offers system integrators aunique opportunity to significantly increase their share of the wireless connectivity pie.

The billion-dollar question about Open RAN – who’s going to put things back together again?
One of the much-anticipated aspects of 5G is that it is software based and cloud-native, creating a separation of hardware from software. In addition, interfaces between the different network components have been standardized. The last and most difficult part of the network to open upwas the Radio Access Network (RAN).

This openness creates an unprecedented ability to disaggregate cellular networks,resulting in the fact that different hardware and software components in the network can be delivered by different vendors.

With so many hardware and software components thrown into the mix, someone needs to build the end-to-end network, manage it and make sure that everything works together smoothly and securely. Yet industrial manufacturing enterprises don’t necessarily have the expertise (or desire) to do so.

The opportunity for system integrators with specific industry and enterprise expertise to lead private 5G network deployment is waiting for those with the knowledge and initiative to grab it.

Specialized system integrators are well-positioned to generate significant profits with private 5G networks for industrial manufacturers.

According to Grandview Research, the 5G system integration market is expected to reach over $31B in 2027, with 5G for Industry being the fastest growing sector.

www.asocscloud.com/blog/...pportunity-for-system-integrators/

ORAN technology could lead to innovation in 5G networks

From: Tracy Ford / March 30, 2021

Rather than combining baseband and radio products in a proprietary solution, ORAN allows a mix-and-match solution from vendors. “The key word is innovation,” added Thierry Maupile, Executive Vice President, Strategy and Product Management at Altiostar, which provides 4G and 5G open virtualized (Open vRAN) software. The opportunity to aggregate the hardware and software in the mobile network creates an opportunity to leverage open interfaces and is bringing in new participants to the space. “Operators need more choice,” he continued.

The United States stands to gain from ORAN adoption, Maupile said. When the mobile network is more software-defined and cloud-defined, it opens the ecosystem to new companies and a wider range of companies. “The U.S. is strong in silicon, in software and in the cloud.”

Open RAN technology is an option for rural operators that have deployed Chinese telecommunications equipment and have funding available to them to install new networks, as well as private LTE networks, said RCR’s Kinney.

From a policy perspective, ORAN is an opportunity for the U.S. to lead in 5G, said Flynn Rico-Johnson, Legislative Director in the Office of Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif. “It’s about jobs and innovation that can happen. The United States was a leader in 4G technology and that meant better service for consumers, but it also opened up an entire ecosystem of jobs and innovation that has lasted for several years. We think there is an equal opportunity in 5G and the way open RAN solutions will be part of that,” according to Rico-Johnson. “The excitement and attention ORAN is receiving right now is a result of a lot of conversations taking place over time,” he added.

wia.org/blog/...logy-could-lead-to-innovation-in-5g-networks/

Upload speed by Rakuten Mobile, Inc. was the fastest among the four major mobile carriers in Japan

Average mobile network upstream speed on Yamanote line Japan 2021, by provider

Published by Statista Research Department, May 12, 2021

The average upload speed of the mobile network provided by Rakuten Mobile, Inc. was the fastest among the four major mobile carriers in Japan, reaching a speed of 33.7 megabits per second (Mbps) on Yamanote line as of May 2021.

www.statista.com/statistics/1096671/...note-line-by-provider/

Rakuten Bank is a giant leap towards completing Rakuten's ecosystem in Taiwan

Aimee Wu 2021/05/24

Rakuten Japan has 20 years of banking experience. Entering the Taiwanese web-only banking market just this year, Rakuten Bank is the forerunner with relevant experiences in the field among two other web-only banks in Taiwan. Rakuten is hoping to build a business ecosystem in Taiwan, leveraging its e-commerce market, baseball team, and well-received Rakuten credit card.

Japan's Rakuten ecosystem successfully retains customers

Offering over 70 services, ranging from e-commerce markets, travel, e-books, to the sports and entertainment industry, Rakuten has captured customers with a wide variety of options. In a sense, Rakuten Japan has penetrated the everyday lives of the Japanese.

What serves as the biggest driver for customers to stay within the Rakuten economic sphere is the loyalty program "Rakuten Super Points". For purchases made on the Rakuten Ichiba virtual mall, Rakuten credit card users will be rewarded up to 4% return in points, which can then be redeemed through purchases, creating a virtuous cycle.

Rakuten Bank began operations in Japan in 2001, securing over 10 million accounts as of April 2021. Thanks to Rakuten's loyalty program for its members, it has gained a firm foothold with Japanese consumers. Now, Rakuten is hoping to venture into the Taiwanese market, where the group has already established a strong presence with the Rakuten Card.

meet-global.bnext.com.tw/articles/view/47369

E-Commerce Solution ChannelAdvisor Announces New Integration with Rakuten Ichiba
MTC NEWS DESK May 14, 2021

Leading e-commerce solution provider adds integrated support for brands and retailers selling on a leading Japanese e-commerce platform

ChannelAdvisor Corporation (NYSE: ECOM), a leading provider of cloud-based e-commerce solutions that enable brands and retailers to increase global sales, today announced its collaboration with Rakuten Ichiba, Rakuten’s marketplace in Japan. With this added support for one of Japan’s largest online shopping malls, ChannelAdvisor customers now have another option for reaching consumers in the dynamic Japanese market.

This new collaboration with Rakuten adds to ChannelAdvisor’s premier network of strategic partners and expansive support for established and emerging marketplaces worldwide. By listing their products on Rakuten Ichiba, brands and retailers can unlock their selling potential and reach millions of online shoppers in one of the world’s largest economies

www.martechcube.com/...dvisor-integrates-with-rakuten-ichiba/

Start selling in Japan with Rakuten Ichiba - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wsICt0_s9w

Glovo raises €450m in Spain’s biggest ever startup funding round

Glovo's latest funding round comes as on-demand AMY LEWIN 1 APRIL 202

Watch out on-demand grocery upstarts, Glovo is coming for you with a fresh €450m in the bank.
The Barcelona-based delivery company has just raised the biggest ever funding round in the history of Spanish startups — and it plans to plough that capital into its ‘Q-commerce’ operations.

Glovo more or less pioneered super-fast delivery from ‘dark stores’ in Europe, opening its first one in Madrid in November 2018. Since then, it has opened 10 more in Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon and Milan, and plans to have 200 by the end of 2021. Within the next three months, it aims to have 45 dark stores open, including in new locations Valencia, Rome, Porto and Bucharest.

These mini fulfillment centres stock around 1,500-2,000 convenience goods like snacks, toilet roll and alcohol, which Glovo’s network of couriers pick up and deliver to customers in 10 minutes.

sifted.eu/articles/glovo-450m-raise/

OpenRAN spend increased 5x in Q1 2021, driven by APAC – Dell’Oro

Written by Scott Bicheno

3 days ago

OpenRAN mania is officially underway, it seems, with spending on OpenRAN compatible kit and software going through the roof in the first quarter of his year.

The news comes courtesy of estimates from analyst firm Dell’Oro, which published them in a blog. “Preliminary estimates suggest total Open RAN revenues – including O-RAN and OpenRAN compatible macro and small cells radios plus baseband hardware and software – increased around five-fold year-over-year,” wrote Analyst Stefan Pongratz.

Intriguingly, given all the noise the US is making about OpenRAN, it’s actually operators in the APAC region that were behind this surge. A lot of this is probably down to Rakuten, which is all-in on the tech, and it looks like other Japanese operators are following in its wake. At this early stage most of the deployments are of the Macro RAN variety, although small cell activity is also on the rise.

Dell’Oro didn’t offer a revenue value in its blog, presumably hoping people will pay for that information. At the early stage of any technological trend you’re going to see impressive growth numbers, but this does seem to confirm that we’ve entered the more substantial phase of the hype cycle for OpenRAN. Just wait until the Americans get their act together.

telecoms.com/509857/...-5x-in-q1-2021-driven-by-apac-delloro/

For decades, marketers have relied on surveys, complex projections, and small panels to understand shopper behaviors. The advent of machine learning enables a new era in market research where large volumes of data from millions of consumers can be used to accurately measure consumer buying behavior and preferences. Rakuten Intelligence, with the largest, most representative e-commerce panels in the world, precisely measures what others have only been able to approximate, revealing new insights about online consumer trends, retailers, brands and logistics companies. This superior research methodology eliminates the need to use less reliable, more time consuming traditional research methodologies.


AT THE FOREFRONT OF OMNICHANNEL MEASUREMENT

As an independent subsidiary of Rakuten, Rakuten Intelligence is fundamentally changing the precision with which online services and e-commerce companies are measured, giving our clients the critical insights they need to quickly act on industry shifts and consumer buying preferences.

In partnership with NPD and Nielsen, the world’s most respected measurement firms, Rakuten Intelligence’s data measurements are normalized across retailers and structured into an industry-wide taxonomy and catalog. All of this happens with speed and accuracy, and is reported daily. Our panel is recruited through a diverse portfolio of sources, including the popular Rakuten Slice app which enables shoppers to organize, track, and save money on their online purchases; and the Unroll.Me service which reduces inbox clutter.

www.rakutenintelligence.com/company/about

Byju’s is eying the acquisition of a startup that could help the biggest e-learning Indian firm deepen its footprint in the U.S.

The Indian startup is in talks to acquire online reading platform Epic, a startup that offers unlimited access to over 40,000 books, videos and quizzes from more than 250 publishers to kids aged 12 or younger, two people familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.

The deal values Epic at “significantly” over $300 million dollars, according to one person, who like the other requested anonymity as the matter is private. The terms of the deal may change and/or the acquisition may not materialize, people warned.

techcrunch.com/2021/03/30/...-us-based-reading-platform-epic/

In a 2020 research paper, ‘Architecting Hybrid IT and Edge for Digital Advantage,’ Matsumoto articulated the rapidly evolving challenges organizations face.

“As the deployment options for hybrid IT continue to transform core business processes, enterprises are being pushed closer to the edge, spurred by oncoming trends such as edge analytics, 5G, and IoT,” he wrote.

“These shifts have resulted in new distributed models, and as a result, connectivity across ecosystems, partners, and SaaS applications has become the enterprise’s lifeblood and cannot be left to the vagaries of the public internet. In this new world, distance has become the silent digital-business killer,” he continued.

Enterprises could respond by turning to a new architecture based on interconnection. Or they can leverage colocation in multitenant datacenters.

www.cdotrends.com/story/15608/...already-run-interconnections

www.boerse-online.de/nachrichten/aktien/...stments-1030324046

Open RAN revenue skyrockets in Q1, tipped to double in 2021

by Diana Goovaerts

May 21, 2021 11:26am

Two new open RAN reports issued this week showed revenue from sales of compatible hardware and software skyrocketed in Q1 2021 and predicted the technology could provide a significant boost to global GDP by 2030.

Dell’Oro Group VP and analyst Stefan Pongratz in a blog highlighted preliminary data that indicated a five-fold surge in open RAN revenue in the first three months of the year, driven in large part by uptake of the technology in Asia. Pongratz pointed to “a fairly synchronized migration from proprietary RAN towards Open RAN in Japan,” with Rakuten Mobile leading the way and other operators there “increasingly optimistic” about the technology.

Still, given the strong Q1 results, Pongratz said Dell’Oro now expects open RAN revenues to nearly double in 2021 to a range of between $500 million and $1 billion.

Separately, Analysys Mason released a report that concluded adoption of open RAN and disaggregated network solutions could boost global gross domestic product (GDP) by hundreds of billions of dollars between 2021 and 2030. It is worth noting the study was sponsored by the Telecom Infra Project, which is working to develop and has heavily promoted open RAN kits.

It assumes that by 2030, approximately 55% of global mobile demand will be served over an open and disaggregated RAN.

Analysys Mason forecast open RAN’s impact on global GDP would grow to reach $91 billion annually by 2030, cumulatively contributing $285 billion between 2021 and 2030. It added this estimate was conservative, noting the cumulative impact could reach as much as $725 billion, depending on adoption rates.

www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/...open-ran-revenue-surges-q1

Von Rakuten Advertising | 20 May 2021 | MARKETING STRATEGIES

Cookieless Tracking ist nach wie vor ein wichtiges Thema in der Branche, worüber sicherlich noch lange gesprochen wird. Immer mehr Kunden haben Fragen bezüglich ihres Datenschutzes und darüber, wie ihre persönlichen Daten verwendet werden. Daher veröffentlichte Apple das iOS 14.5-Update und setzt seine App Tracking-Transparenz-Initiative (ATT) um.

Obwohl noch nicht vollständig geklärt ist, wie sich diese Aktualisierungen auf die Werbebranche auswirken werden, profitieren Advertiser und Publisher von der guten Aufstellung des Affiliate-Marketings, um den neuen Herausforderungen zu begegnen.

Um unsere Kunden und Partner dabei zu unterstützen, die Änderungen zu verstehen, haben wir uns mit den Experten von Rakuten Advertising zusammengesetzt. Das Thema war ganz klar: Back to Basics.

blog.rakutenadvertising.com/de-de/...und-affiliate-marketing/

Rakuten Securities Reaches Six Million General Securities Accounts

One million accounts opened in a record five months; total of six million points to be awarded in commemorative lucky draw giveaway campaign.

Tokyo, May 19, 2021- Rakuten Securities, Inc. today announced it has reached six million general securities accounts. After surpassing five million accounts in December 2020 with the addition of a million accounts opened over an approximately nine-month span, growth has continued to accelerate. Rakuten Securities reached an additional one million accounts in approximately five months, the fastest milestone to date. Additionally, for monthly saving investment trusts, 1.33 million customers were making regular monthly savings deposits to investment trusts totaling approximately 45 billion yen, up +164.8% year-on-year (YoY), as of the end of March 2021.

global.rakuten.com/corp/news/update/2021/...;category=fintech

What’s Next—2021 and Beyond

2021 is likely to see OpenRAN gain more momentum, as the deployments announced in 2020 begin to roll out and others are announced.

In the U.S., wireless newcomer Dish will begin roll out of the world’s second (after Rakuten) large, greenfield network based entirely on O-RAN technology. With a commitment to cover 70% of the U.S. population by June 2023, this new network will be a further test of O-RAN’s carrier-grade capabilities—and is bound to highlight further areas for development. More trials and deployments are likely to be announced during 2021 with both Orange and the U.K.’s O2 seeing a role for OpenRAN in indoor coverage for business customers.

Based on this increasing level of trial and deployment activity, membership of the key industry bodies is likely to swell, further enriching the industry dialogue. In turn, it will lead to an acceleration of standards development and interoperability testing. The TIP, for example, has already published its readiness plan for 2021, and further blueprints and roadmaps are anticipated this year as the deployments continue. By the end of the year, OpenRAN can be expected to be firmly embedded in the deployment plans of most mainstream operators and gain a significant foothold in enterprise and private network deployments.

www.mwrf.com/technologies/systems/article/...comes-mainstream