Japanese "Hate" For the iPhone All a Big Mistake 327
MBCook writes "AppleInsider has posted a great article explaining that Wired's story about Japanese iPhone hate was completely false and has been edited at least twice. The comments in the article were recycled and taken out of context, with those interviewed blogging about the mistakes. The piece then goes on to analyze the iPhone's standing in Japan, as well as some of the major factors working for and against it. At last it points out that the Wall Street Journal tried the same myth of failure just after the phone's launch in Japan, recycled from a myth the year before, pushed by a research company with a possible anti-Apple agenda."
Re:Everyone hates congress too (Score:4, Informative)
Why do people persist in propagating the myth that there's cultural opposition to US products? Apple absolutely dominates the MP3 category with the iPod here, and the Macbooks sell like gangbusters.
US cars don't sell well because a) they don't sell well in the US either b) half of the overseas models don't even come in RHD versions. Of course they don't sell.
I won't consider an iPhone for all the reasons others have listed. Why would I intentionally saddle myself with a phone that has fewer features - ALOT fewer - than my current Softbank model? A model that's 1.5 years old now?
Why do people persist in propagating the myth that there's cultural opposition to US products?
Because its not a myth. By and large, it is easy to bring goods into the USA because the USA has a tradition of a generally free trading country. Do a google and see what's involved into bringing goods from the USA into Japan, and then see what's involved in vice versa. If they wanted to bring in more competition and other goods, you'd see those doors being opened. But they aren't.
Re:Apple Damage Control (Score:2, Informative)
Read the first blog response link [blog.nobi.cc].
Essentially, the guy says he was taken out of context, but if you read the note he fired off to correct the error, he also goes on to explain that the iPhone is simply not selling well in Japan. He claims this is Softbank's marketing problem, but it points to a larger problem that the demand for the product has already been filled in the first few months after release.
Those who want it have it. Everyone else is indifferent.
They don't hate it. (Score:2, Informative)
But they don't use it either. Here's the facts: The phone market for Japan is the tightest in the world. Frankly, the phones sold there are generations ahead of what's sold elsewhere in the world. These phones do video teleconferencing, can be used to do wireless credit card transactions, digital TV, some of them can be used as train/bus passes, and even interface with vending machines (just point and click, and viola). The "iphone" frankly has a poor feature set, and oh yes -- it is not a flip phone. The japanese love their flip phones from everything I've read. But as I'm sure there's someone who actually lives in japan around on the forums, please post back and tell us what the real story is... I only talk to people online.
So no, Japan doesn't hate the iphone, there is no conspiracy, Apple is simply behind the times in that country. But hey, if it makes you feel any better -- I doubt Comcast is making any inroads there either. ;)
IMO (Score:2, Informative)
#1 Music App (Score:5, Informative)
My partners and I had the #1 Music app in Japan for several weeks last month (Boombox - http://tiny.cc/Lrd5g [tiny.cc]), so they are definitely interested in the iPhone. Just because they don't buy the phone in the same numbers as in the US doesn't mean they hate it. It seems like it's doing fairly well over there.
Re:They don't hate it. (Score:5, Informative)
...which apparently didn't include TFA. Wired fabricated a quote about how the iPhone is lame compared to Japanese phones, and tried to attach it to two separate Japanese "authorities" on the subject, and both of those people then repudiated Wired's attribution and said that actually the iPhone is their favorite phone. The whole point of the article is that the iPhone is doing fairly well and people like it a lot over there -- the main thing holding it back is its carrier, which is sort of an underdog. And it turns out the iPhone is primarily responsible for major growth in that carrier anyway.
So, you're basically repeating the same myths that the entire article was written to refute, since the article explicitly responds to most of your points... but by referring to "everything you've read", you still got modded informative. Oh well...
Re:IMO (Score:5, Informative)
Good point. If only it cited its sources, thus allowing some way for its claims to be verified.
Come on now. This story is about blatant journalistic fraud. They give explicit documentation on how Wired completely fabricated important facts in order to make a sensational-sounding story. If their claim was "The iPhone is the best thing evar and EVERYONE LOVES IT", you'd have a point, but the article is mostly about how Wired repeatedly lied in its article, and then they present data to basically argue "the iPhone is doing pretty okay in Japan". They aren't making particularly inflated claims...
Re:Everyone hates congress too (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Everyone hates congress too (Score:5, Informative)
In 2006 -- the year that Congress went from GOP to Democratic control -- there were 33 Senate races. Six Republican incumbents and no Democratic incumbents were defeated [wikipedia.org]. There were three open seats. So 24 Senators out of 33 were re-elected.
In the House, twenty-two GOP incumbents got the boot and there 34 open seats (including primary election losers) [wikipedia.org]; 379 out of 435 got re-elected.
So in a particularly "revolutionary" and "tumultuous" election, 72% of Senators and 87% of Representatives were re-elected.
I'd have to call that people "re-electing" their congressmen.
Re:He's correct (Score:3, Informative)
He's speaking commonly known in economic circles truth, YOU go do some research and keep up with things if you call bullshit.
No, the person who originally made the claims is the one responsible for backing them up. Period.
If it's as obvious as you claim, it should hardly be onerous to do so.
Not saying I necessarily disagree with you or the OP, but you're mistaken in who the burden of proof lies with.
Re:Everyone hates congress too (Score:3, Informative)
Because the number of phones that can receive emails is roughly the same as the number of phones that can receive MMS,
Errr... No. While a lot of phones can use e-mail, few can use push e-mail like the iPhone and BlackBerry. In fact, taking out the iPhone, BlackBerry and some other smartphones (Android, Windows Mobile, Symbian), the list is very short. Compare that to where every phone made in the last ~5 years can get MMS messages, from low-end freebies to the latest in technology (obviously excluding the iPhone).
Re:Everyone hates congress too (Score:3, Informative)
By and large, it is easy to bring goods into the USA because the USA has a tradition of a generally free trading country.
[Citation needed] [bbc.co.uk]
They love iPhones here in Japan! (Score:4, Informative)
I live in Japan and have been here for just over 9 years. And just about everyone I know (Japanese and foreigners alike) either have an iPhone or are dying to get one. Yours truly included.