IP: for Japanese IPers -- a talk Japan's Personal HandyPhone

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

ATIP Technology Seminar


Time & Date: 4-6PM, Thursday 14 March, 1996


Where: Asian Technology Information Program (ATIP)
       Harks Roppongi Building 1F
       6-15-21 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106
       Tel: +81 3 5411-6670; Fax: +81 3 5411-6671, Email: INFO () ATIP OR JP


Space is limited. Please confirm attendance by fax, or email (no telephone).


TITLE:          Japan's Personal HandyPhone System (PHS)
               (Jeffrey L. Funk, Ph.D., Kobe University)




ABSTRACT: Since its introduction in July of 1995, Japan's Personal
HandyPhone System (PHS) has not met the expectations of many analysts.
Although it appears that there will be at least 1 million subscribers by the
end of fiscal 1995, this will fall well short of the 2.5 million subscribers
that some people had predicted. Instead, it appears that PHS has
inadvertently increased the number of cellular subscribers by encouraging
people to consider some form of mobile communication. The total number of
cellular subscribers is expected  to double during fiscal 1995 and it
appears that this growth will continue for the next several years.


However, there are several possible ways in which the number of subscribers
to PHS may increase dramatically over the next few years. These include:
1.) the recently increased coverage and reduced PHS handset, subscription
and connection time prices; 2.) wireless data communication; and 3.) PHS as
a form of wireless private branch exchange (PBX).  This presentation will
describe the current status of PHS including its perceived problems and the
ways in which the number of subscribers to PHS may eventually meet the
optimistic forecasts that were made in early 1995.




BIO: Dr. Jeff Funk has degrees in Physics, Mechanical Engineering, and
Engineering & Public Policy (Ph.D., 1984 Carnegie-Mellon University). He
has studied the management of product development in Japan as a Fulbright
Scholar at Tokyo University, as an American Electronics Association Fellow
at Yokogawa Electric, and as a Visiting Engineer at Mitsubishi Electric.
Most recently, he has been an Assistant Professor of  Business at the
Pennsylvania State University. Beginning in April of 1996, he will be an
Associate Professor of  Business at  Kobe University.


Jeffrey L. Funk, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Kobe University
Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration
2-1 Rokko, Nada, Kobe 657 Japan
 Tel: +81 78-881-1212; Fax: +81 78-881-6434