Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket

October 17, 2023

Sean Kinney, Editor in Chief at RCR Wireless News speaks with John Baker, SVP Business Development, Mavenir on how people really see Open RAN market dynamics while at FYUZ 2023.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amRXGbttGQ8&t=26s
 

Open RAN will change the future of the telecom industry

6 Nov 2023

With the implementation and adoption of Open RAN and V-RAN technologies, telecommunications carriers can expect reductions in capital expenditure costs, operational costs, supply chain risks, and operational risks.

Especially during these early stages of implementation, we believe the enhancement of initiatives aimed at commercializing the offerings of each technology are the keys to achieving their widespread adoption. These initiatives include enticing as many businesses as possible to form and participate in businesses alliances, as well as the active formulation of specifications and the development of product services.

The shift to a multi-vendor environment and to software-based systems is expected to present new business opportunities for a wide range of stakeholders.

https://www.ey.com/en_jp/tmt/...ge-the-future-of-the-telecom-industry
 

Flexibility within the selection process for procuring CU/DU/RU hardware will become possible. Increased competition amongst vendors comes with the industry becoming a multivendor environment, thereby pushing hardware costs down.  

Rakuten is another affiliate network that connects content creators to brands who want to sell stuff. There are a lot of brands, but Rakuten is especially strong in consumer goods. For influencers and creators who have a fit for lifestyle products, it might be a great choice.

Like Impact, Rakuten manages products and tracking links for multiple brands at once, helping you track conversions. Commissions vary–since each brand sets its own–but they can be much better than Amazon.

Advantages of Rakuten for content creators:
Easy-to-use network with lots of great brands
Often better affiliate payouts than Amazon
Easily track links and conversions

Disadvantages of Rakuten for content creators:
A one-size-fits-all approach for publishers (need to choose a campaign that fits) vs building custom agreements with the influencer networks

https://www.mightynetworks.com/resources/content-creator-platforms
 

Earn an increased $40 bonus by joining or referring a friend to Rakuten for online shopping

Oct. 20, 2023

Today is a good day to place some online shopping orders via online shopping portals if you want to get rewarded with increased earning rates for your purchases. These portals often offer perks like one-time bonuses for new members and the opportunity to earn additional rewards by referring friends and family.
Rakuten is one of TPG's favorite portals, and if you join today, you can earn an increased $40 one-time bonus by spending at least $40 within 90 days. This offer is set to expire Nov. 17.

Existing Rakuten members can also participate by referring a friend — though note that the $40 elevated offer isn't available to new members.

https://thepointsguy.com/news/rakuten-referral-bonus-online-shopping/
 

Rakuten Travel Xchange and Lion Travel Collaborate to Offer Accommodations

- Collaboration spanning approximately 700,000 hotel and vacation rental properties promotes Taiwanese travel to Japan and other countries.

November 6, 2023, Tokyo - Rakuten Group, Inc. today announced that Rakuten Travel Xchange, the Group's accommodation wholesale service, has begun offering hotel accommodations to Lion Travel, one of the largest travel agencies in Taiwan. The collaboration enables Lion Travel to sell a wide range of Rakuten Travel Xchange accommodations, including hotels and vacation rental properties registered to Rakuten Travel, one of Japan's leading online travel agencies (OTA).

Rakuten Travel Xchange is a hotel accommodation wholesale and travel technology service providing travel retailers around the world with easy access to hotel rates and inventories through a single source platform. Through its vast network of partnerships with hotel chains, wholesalers, channel managers and other large OTAs around the world, Rakuten Travel Xchange provides access to some 700,000 unique hotel and vacation rental properties worldwide, including 20,000 directly contracted properties in 200 countries and regions. Travel retailers can manage their entire hotel inventory needs from a single API connection via a tailored web portal or template solutions, or its Travel Agent Portal, without spending valuable resources on integrating multiple supply partners.

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/...ccommodations-45245122/
 

Kobo Plus in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland

Rakuten Kobo expands digital reading offering in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland with Kobo Plus, the all-you-can-read and listen subscription


TORONTO – November 7, 2023 – Leading digital reading retailer and publisher Rakuten Kobo announces the Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland launches of Kobo Plus, the all-you-can-enjoy subscription offering booklovers unlimited access to over 1 million eBooks and over 120K audiobooks for a low monthly fee.

The Kobo Plus catalogue is ever-growing, with more titles being added to the collection each month. The service has three budget-friendly subscription plan offers:

Kobo Plus Read: Unlimited eBooks for 9.99 € in Finland, 89 DKR in Denmark, 169 NOK in Norway and 129 SEK in Sweden per month

Kobo Plus Listen: Unlimited audiobooks for 9.99 € in Finland, 89 DKR in Denmark, 169 NOK in Norway and 129 SEK in Sweden per month

Kobo Plus Read and Listen: Unlimited eBooks and audiobooks for 12.99 € in Finland, 129 DKR in Denmark, 189 NOK in Norway and 159 SEK in Sweden per month

“Kobo Plus has generated tremendous excitement as a popular choice in various regions globally. Enthusiastic readers from countries including the Netherlands, Canada, US, UK, France and many more have embraced the opportunity to explore countless eBooks and audiobooks without limitations.

https://www.kobo.com/news/...all-you-can-read-and-listen-subscription
 

Fans of the wizarding world, rejoice! Harry Potter has arrived on Kobo Plus

Dutch, Belgian and French fans will now have access to all Harry Potter books and other stories from the Wizarding World through their Kobo Plus subscription

TORONTO – November 8, 2023 – Rakuten Kobo reaches an agreement with Pottermore Publishing to bring all Harry Potter books and other stories from the Wizarding World to its Kobo Plus catalogue in the Netherlands, Belgium and France. The beloved fantasy books will be available to Kobo Plus subscribers in English, Dutch and French starting November 8.

For one low monthly fee, Kobo Plus subscribers will be able to immerse themselves in the wizarding world through the Harry Potter series, the Hogwarts Library books, screenplays from the Fantastic Beasts movies and more, wherever and whenever they please.

https://www.kobo.com/news/...ce-harry-potter-has-arrived-on-kobo-plus
 
 

Addition of 192,000 subscribers in October alone

But the company now claims to have some gas in its tank. After dusting off its mobile plans, and striking a deal with KDDI to improve service quality, Rakuten Mobile finished October with 5.42 million customers. As low as that still seems next to the more than 80 million reported by NTT Docomo, it includes the addition of 192,000 subscribers in October alone, said Rakuten in its latest earnings update. That's nearly double the amount Rakuten added in July.

If it can sustain this rate of growth, Rakuten will finish 2024 with about 8.1 million subscribers. The figure is significant because Rakuten Mobile has previously said it needs between 8 and 10 million customers just to break even, following efforts to slash monthly network costs and reduce capital expenditure.

https://www.lightreading.com/wireless/...n-mobile-customers-next-year
 

Rakuten Advertising had the opportunity to sit down with Lyst’s Partner Growth Director, Karla Stevens, to chat about the company’s offering and its exciting plans. Join us as we dive into all things Lyst.  

Tell us about Lyst

Founded 12 years ago in London, Lyst is the world’s biggest and most intelligent shopping platform. Instead of browsing different stores individually, the customer can see and shop all of fashion at once. Our 200 million members span the globe and are a mix of deep fashion insiders plus a much broader group of highly committed, curious fashion shoppers who shop often and are always open to inspiration. We partner with our customers’ favourite fashion stores to offer over 12,00 brands, including everything from High Street to High End Luxury.

Why did you choose to partner with Rakuten Advertising?

Not only are Rakuten Advertising partnered with many of the world’s best brands and stores that our customers love to shop, but their account management team are experts in their specific areas. We visited the team last month, and I was blown away by their passion and knowledge of their partners. Each question the Rakuten team had was from a new perspective and challenged us to think differently for every partner. Our teams work extremely well together, and with this approach, we can solve problems and explore new opportunities for our partners.  

https://blog.rakutenadvertising.com/insights/publisher-spotlight-lyst/
 

Wer kein Sitzfleich hat, sollte die Aktie m.E. nicht kaufen,  

Best Use of Retail Media – Rakuten Advertising, Coles Liquor Group & Cashrewards

November 07, 2023

In a groundbreaking fusion of retail media and affiliate marketing, Rakuten Advertising, Coles Liquor Group, and Cashrewards introduced "The Perfect Pairing" campaign. Emulating the impact of a strategically placed supermarket aisle display, this collaboration enhanced the customer journey through the retail media channel. By seamlessly integrating an enticing cashback campaign on Cashrewards' homepage, akin to eye-level allure in physical stores, the trio redefined digital marketing. One defining element of this campaign was its unique funding: entirely supported by the beverage brand, mirroring traditional retail practices. Leveraging Cashrewards' Love Island partnership for pre-launch excitement, the campaign achieved unparalleled success. The result? A 60-fold increase in sales for the beverage brand and a doubling of Coles’ Dark Spirit sales. This innovative synergy of retail media and affiliate marketing proved to be a winning combo in the eyes of our judges.
Check out https://performancemarketingawards.com/ for more details on the awards.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pDhK169jik&t=37s
 

https://twitter.com/RobinWuzz  

Rakuten’s winning formula: The power of points

“I think that customers are attracted by the very simple product premise that we’ve offered since the beginning: one Rakuten Point for every 100 yen spent,” Ogawa conjectures. “I also believe that our point strategy is bearing fruit. We’re leveraging the strengths of the Rakuten Ecosystem to aid steady GTV and membership growth.”

Ogawa is confident that Rakuten Card will continue serving as a core pillar of the Rakuten Ecosystem.
“The Rakuten Group offers a full lineup of cashless services – credit card, e-money and QR code payments,” he says. “Leveraging our strengths as one of Japan’s biggest credit card companies with such a strong membership base, we aim to further strengthen integration with all of the Rakuten Group’s payment services and provide even more convenient services to support the lifestyles of each and every one of our customers.”

https://rakuten.today/blog/...as-japan-embraces-cashless-economy.html
 

Life Insurance’s exclusive agents are selling Rakuten Mobile successfully

A little more peculiar was the disclosure that Rakuten Life Insurance’s exclusive agents are selling Rakuten Mobile subscriptions, and apparently successfully so.

https://medium.com/tokyo-fintech/...dates-cards-payments-194c60e5dea4
 

Rakuten Card’s Systems Development Subsidiary in Vietnam Relocates to New, Expanded Office

TOKYO, November 14, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rakuten Fintech Vietnam Co., Ltd., a systems development subsidiary of Rakuten Card Co., Ltd. today announced the company has relocated to a new location in Ho Chi Minh City as of November 13 to enable the company to further increase personnel and expand business operations, in response to growing systems development work.
Rakuten Card established Rakuten Fintech Vietnam as a development center in October 2021 with the goal of driving sustainable growth, accelerating systems development for its expanding service lineup and supporting business continuity planning for the IT systems that form the foundation of Rakuten Card’s services. The Vietnamese government has implemented significant measures to support the development of human resources in the IT industry, heightening expectations over the long-term for securing and deploying top-tier tech talent within Vietnam. In addition, the minimal time zone difference between Japan and Vietnam is ideal for rapid response to business needs in Japan.
With more than 29 million cards issued, Rakuten Card is an industry leader in Japan. From our new position in Ho Chi Minh City, we are eager to further enhance Rakuten Card’s success and contribute to Rakuten’s leading fintech businesses.

https://www.nasdaq.com/press-release/...nam-relocates-to-new-expanded
 

Mobile operators to invest over $30 bn in open radio access networks by 2030

Published by  New Desk  November 13, 2023

New Delhi, Nov 13 (IANS) Mobile operators are likely to invest more than $30 billion in open RAN networks globally by 2030, representing a CAGR of 24 per cent for the period, according to a latest report.

Open RAN network investments have increased steadily in recent years, driven primarily by greenfield network operators in the Asia-Pacific and North American regions, according to Counterpoint Research.

However, following this period of rapid network build-outs, greenfield operators are looking to lower capex in 2023 and 2024 and focus on network monetization.

As a result, the Open RAN market will stagnate during this and the next year.

“Investments will start to increase YoY after 2025 with network operators investing a cumulative total of more than $30 billion between 2022 and 2030,” the report noted.

https://www.sarkaritel.com/...-in-open-radio-access-networks-by-2030/
 

Drive Assist Assurrance Internet Sales increase 150%

https://www.rakuten-sonpo.co.jp/news/tabid/85/...=678&dispmid=753
 

Rakuten Selects OpenAI as Strategic AI Partner and Collaborator on New "Rakuten AI for Business" Platform

Tokyo, November 14, 2023 - Rakuten Group, Inc. announced today they have selected OpenAI as a strategic partner in delivering state-of-the-art artificial intelligence (AI) experiences to consumers and businesses in Japan and worldwide.

As a key part of this collaboration, Rakuten and OpenAI also today unveiled Rakuten AI for Business, a new artificial intelligence platform to be provided by Rakuten and powered by OpenAI. The two companies will work together to design and deliver services that empower business customers with cutting-edge AI solutions for improving operations, strengthening connections with customers and driving better results. Rakuten AI for Business is available now through invitation only, with plans to expand the offering in 2024 and beyond.

Rakuten AI for Business supports a diversity of essential business functions, including marketing, sales, customer support, operations, strategy planning and engineering. For example, the Rakuten AI Analyst answers complex business questions with organized data, compelling charts and actionable insights. The Rakuten AI Agent assists professionals in real time to help provide better, faster, smarter customer service. The Rakuten AI Librarian synthesizes and summarizes all of the client’s documentation to answer questions from customers in seconds.

Ting Cai, Rakuten Group Chief Data Officer, commented, “Our vision for Rakuten AI for Business centers on our commitment to making AI a force for good that augments humanity, drives productivity and fosters prosperity. OpenAI has pioneered Generative AI technology and I am extremely excited about this collaboration to bring cutting-edge innovation to businesses.”

Brad Lightcap, OpenAI Chief Operating Officer, commented, “We are thrilled to partner with Rakuten to bring the power of AI to online experiences in Japan and beyond. We look forward to delivering meaningful solutions for business customers.”

Unique aspects of Rakuten AI for Business

Convenient: Provides a conversational interface on smartphones, tablets and other devices that are easily accessible anytime, anywhere.

Secure: Confidential data stays secure end-to-end on the edge, on the wire through Rakuten internet services, and in the data center with Rakuten’s cloud solutions.

Exclusive: Rakuten AI for Business leverages 25+ years of deep domain knowledge and unique data – combined with OpenAI's cutting-edge prowess – to provide unique insight to customers.

A global innovation company with a vibrant, unique ecosystem enjoyed by more than 40 million monthly active users in Japan alone, Rakuten operates the country’s largest online shopping mall and offers a diverse portfolio of over 70 services spanning e-commerce, fintech, digital content and telecommunications. OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company whose mission is to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity.

Rakuten's mission is to contribute to society by creating value through innovation and entrepreneurship. OpenAI shares that vision and has been instrumental in bringing AI to millions of consumers and businesses. Together, the two companies will continue aiming to revolutionize the way consumers shop and engage with businesses online.

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2023/1114_02.html
 

Solving the challenges of deployment and management of complex analytic pipeline on Kubernetes

By Mehran Hadipour
VP Global Business Development and Alliances, Symworld Cloud, Rakuten Symphony

November 13, 2023

Kubernetes (K8s) can be an excellent application deployment platform. However, analytics pipelines can provide unique challenges including complexity in deployment data management and lifecycle operations. Dell and Rakuten Symphony, enabled by Intel technology, have collaborated to radically simplify the delivery of complex data analytics applications for both the data scientist and the IT professional, which is detailed in a new solution brief from Intel.

The solution combines selected Dell storage and server platforms coupled with Application-as-a-Service capability of Rakuten Symphony Symcloud that eliminate complexity, accelerate deployment and automate lifecycle operations of applications, including horizontal and vertical scaling, upgrade automation and performance management.

https://symphony.rakuten.com/blog/...-analytic-pipeline-on-kubernetes
 

Rakuten Collaborates with Khloe Kardashian on "The 5 Deals Before Black Friday," A New Tradition to Help Shoppers Get the Most Savings this Holiday Season

14 Nov, 2023, 09:00 ET

Rakuten members can save on Khloe's favorite gifts of the season and more with the highest Cash Back rates ever from Bloomingdale's, Dermstore, Dyson, Macy's, and Walmart

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In time for the year's busiest shopping season, Rakuten, the leading shopping destination to save with Cash Back, announced a partnership with Khloé Kardashian to reveal its first-ever "The 5 Deals Before Black Friday" holiday shopping event. From Nov. 18-22, Kardashian will reveal a daily Cash Back deal available to shop exclusively on Rakuten.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/...day-season-301987602.html
 

        1.§Significant improvement in Mobile Segment FCF EBITDA to improve materially Significantly reduced Capex after FY2024

        2.§2. Growing Internet Services FCF EBITDA to continue to improve Cash conversion cycle to shorten

        3.§3. Growing CF from FinTech Dividends, Management fee, etc. (FY2022: approx. JPY 70bn)

CF from equity-related financings if necessary

23Q3CEOPPT_E.pdf
https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/
 

Announcing “Rakuten AI for Business,” powered by OpenAI

November 14, 2023

Rakuten AI for Business is a new AI platform, provided by Rakuten and powered by OpenAI. The two companies are working together to design and deliver services that empower business customers with cutting-edge AI solutions for improving operations, strengthening connections with customers and driving better results.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okhQtkzonxE
 

Messenger für Unternehmen: Der Viber Messenger im Überblick

Oct 24, 2023

Viber gehört zu den beliebtesten Messengern in Osteuropa und vielen asiatischen Ländern. Für Unternehmen bietet er von Newslettern über Chatbots bis hin zu Bezahloptionen spannende Features.
In Südostasien und vielen Teilen Europas ist Viber DER Messengerdienst für den privaten Austausch. Doch auch für Unternehmen bietet Viber enorm viel Potenzial.

Viber hatte laut einem Quartalsbericht von September 2022 1,4 Milliarden (unique) registrierte Nutzer:innen weltweit und verzeichnet 2023 einigen externen Schätzungen zufolge rund 820 Millionen monatlich aktive Nutzer:innen (MAU). Nach eigenen Angaben liegt die Anzahl der MAU 2023 innerhalb der EU bei 45 Millionen Nutzer:innen.

Aktuell ist Viber in 190 Ländern aktiv und Nutzer:innen verschicken im Schnitt 30 Nachrichten pro Tag und öffnen den Messenger zwölf Mal täglich.

Zum Vergleich: WhatsApp verzeichnet weltweit zwei Milliarden MAU. In Osteuropa und Russland ist Viber bei den Nutzer:innen aber beliebter als WhatsApp.

Aktuell bietet Viber drei Unternehmenslösungen: Die Gratis-App für Kleinunternehmen (seit Oktober 2023) sowie die Bezahloptionen Viber Business Messages und Viber Chatbots. Letztere zwei können auch miteinander kombiniert werden und bieten auch Analytics-Möglichkeiten sowie die Integration in CRM-Systeme. Besonders spannend ist die Möglichkeit, dass Kund:innen im Viber-Chat über Viber Pay in einigen Ländern auch schon direkt zahlen können.

https://engage.sinch.com/de-de/blog/...senger-ueberblick-unternehmen/
 

Ich halte auch einen Börsengang von Rakuten Viber für möglich, da er m.E. ein Teil von Rakuten ist, das weniger in das Eco-System von Rakuten eingebunden ist. Möglich wäre auch ein Komplettverkauf an einen Investor.

Eine Bewertung ist sehr schwierig, denn eine Orientierung an registrierten Nutzen bzw monatlich aktiven Nutzern würde sicher gigantische Zahlen ergeben, wenn man Vergleichswerte heranzieht, während Umsatz und Gewinn zwar gestiegen sind, aber noch in diese Dimensionen hineinwachsen müssen.

Einen Betrag zwischen 2,5 und 5,0 Milliarden US-Dollar würde man dabei aber meiner Meinung nach mit Sicherheit erzielen - das sind Zahlen, die in die momentane extrem niedrige Börsenbewertung und Ratings noch nicht ansatzweise eingeflossen sind.

Ich halte allerdings den eingeschlagenen Wert, inländische Fintechwerte wie Rakuten Bank und Rakuten Securities teilweise zu monetarisieren für richtig, da man hiermit von der Japanlastigkeit etwas wegkommt, die sich im Falle einer teilweisen oder ganzen Monetarisierung von Rakuten Viber noch verstärken würde.