Infinite Path

Japan’s mobile phone manufacturers are being forced to react to a decreasing demand for handsets across the country by taking a few bold steps into the global mobile phone market in a move which will undoubtedly throw light on the intriguing issue of how to crack a marketplace dominated by strong brand identity.

Manufacturers such as Sharp, Panasonic, Japan Inc, and Toshiba are hoping to launch their handsets abroad as a combination of an ever-ageing population, a global economic recession, and the introduction to foreign lands of the iPhone takes its toll on consumers who initially lapped up Japanese-manufactured handsets.

The global mobile phone marketplace may be a tough nut for the Japanese to crack, dominated as it is by brand considerations. Over the last few years, the smart phone and the iPhone have emerged to capture the imagination of consumers in Europe and the USA.

These phones are no longer toys for the rich and famous; they are in the pockets of millions of people. These consumers have certain expectations when it comes to looking for a new handset and these expectations have, in large part, been formed as a result of the dominance of the smart phone and iPhone.

People expect their new models to deliver the functionality, the aesthetic appeal, the application-driven set-up, and the general feel of these kinds of existing phones and it will take something special (and different) for consumers to look to new models from Japanese manufacturers. Trust is also a significant issue here. Consumers know what to expect from smart phones and iPhones and new players in this competitive market will need to overcome this if they are to succeed in the long term.

This said, some of the country’s manufacturers remain optimistic that they’ll be able to do just that with Sharp, the leading mobile manufacturer in Japan, apparently expecting to shift four million handsets outside the country in the 2009 fiscal year. It would seem, though, that innovation will need to lead the way if these manufacturers are to succeed.

Finding a niche in the market certainly won’t be an easy task but it may be the way forward for these companies, rather than attempting to compete with the dominant giants of the smartphone and iPhone world. Ultimately, if any country can lead the way in innovation, even in such a crowded market, it is Japan, which is already trying to find new ways to power handsets.