312 posts and columns on Japan
2013 Was a Huge Year for Android Gaming
And paid apps on both Android and iOS are falling deeper into obscurity.Voices
How Japan Is Winning in Mobile Games
Better than any other country, Japan’s mobile game makers have cracked the revenue code despite having few world-wide megahits. The secret: an industry that is constantly experimenting with new ways to master the psychology of mobile payments.News Byte
Japan Overtakes U.S. in Apple/Google App Store Revenue
Japan is now the top country worldwide in revenue from Apple’s App Store and Google Play, according to a new report from App Annie. The app analytics company attributed the surprising shift to rapid smartphone adoption over the past year in Japan — where feature phones have held on for longer — and explosive growth in Google Play spending, outpacing global trends due to the availability of carrier billing as an alternative to credit cards.News Byte
Twitter’s Alert Service Crosses the Pond
Twitter on Monday extended its Alerts service to users in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The program allows official government agencies and public emergency services to send out mobile push notification and text messages to followers on Twitter, in order to deliver relevant information in times of crisis. At launch, Twitter signed up 57 government agencies in the U.K. and Ireland.The World’s Most Powerful Supercomputer Is Still in China
What the top American machine lacks in raw power, it makes up for in efficiency.Voices
Apple Finds Surprising Growth Market in Japan
Japan isn’t most companies’ idea of a growth market. After two decades of economic malaise, it is saddled with a shrinking, aging population, and domestic firms that pride themselves on consumer electronics have kept foreign competitors at bay for decades.PlayPhone Adds SingTel to Its Roster, Betting on “Not Yet Mature” Emerging Markets
And it’s a safe bet, too. Just don’t expect a whole lot of change overnight.Snapchat Is Mulling Another Huge Round at a $3.5 Billion Valuation
Yes, we know: Cray cray.News Byte