Google is not limiting itself to courting just one cell phone company in Japan… ads on AU by KDDI are urging people to make gmail or igoogle their mobile homepage… AU’s PC email service, AU one is all run through gmail, and now the SMILEYS for all three major providers are supported in gmail.
This is smart because the smileys and little pictures in Japanese email and cell phone email are a huge part of communication here. It’s to the point that some people might wonder if you’re angry at them if you send an email without any smileys. Despite the limited number (although there are still over a hundred on my phone) they are very useful. Used for puns, or just pictures instead of words. The hearts and faces are also often used to lighten things up or express an emotion without having to put them in words.
They even have bowing ones for “sorry” or “thank you”. Now we can get them on the big screen as well.
So google is smart… means that they have some pretty good knowledge of the Japanese market. I think I mentioned this before when I noticed the big push Google was making for mobile adsense in Japan. The mobile market is where the young people with spendable income are.
Hey google, how about getting some of the popular cellphone novelists to throw in some google ads! Tell ’em Jay sent you!
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