Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket

Rakuten goes all-in on the Big Game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YresqeUWXl0  

https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/...p;ocid=msedgdhp&duration=1D
 

Chris Donkin 11 FEB 2022

Nokia Europe SVP Jan van Tetering backed the industry to overcome additional network complexities associated with open RAN and make its adoption a reality, though conceded it was too early to tell if the approach would become mainstream.

In an interview with Mobile World Live, van Tetering said use of the architecture was unstoppable, though the jury was still out on when or how much it would be deployed by operators despite wide support.

https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/...n-ran-unstoppable  

The Gulf has a 5G conundrum and Open RAN is the key to its tech sovereignty
January 12, 2022

Mohammed Soliman

Long-simmering economic and political tensions between the U.S. and China have continued to spill over into the technology sector, where the two superpowers have made this ever-more vital industry the site of a new Cold War. The acrimony looks poised to only get worse moving forward, potentially leading to what some have characterized as a splintering of the many interdependent nodes of tech manufacturing and development. This tech decoupling, as it’s been dubbed, is progressing slowly but surely, and 5G is at the heart of it. Despite the transition to the Biden administration — and a rare show of bipartisanship — Washington has continued to pressure its allies to exclude Huawei from their developing 5G networks. Some third parties to the dispute have sought to find a way to navigate this divide, trying to hedge their bets between the two sides in a way that maximizes their potential geopolitical and economic returns. This dilemma is particularly acute for the Gulf states, and as they seek to balance their relationships with both Washington and Beijing, several have chosen to stake out their own territory by building an Open Radio Access Network (RAN). This initiative could be a potential solution to the current conundrum that would give states 5G sovereignty in an era of great power competition, with a digital twist. Moreover, the case of 5G in the Gulf may provide key takeaways for observers looking to understand how the issue of tech sovereignty might play out amid the growing U.S.-China divide — both for good and for ill.

The 5G network issue has been framed as a zero-sum competition between a Washington-aligned techno-bloc and a Beijing-aligned one, with no ground in between. This zero-sum approach to emerging technologies created the impetus for establishing a middle road for 5G networks, the Open RAN, which represents a solution for middle powers that want to walk a delicate line between the United States and China. Since it failed to present its allies with 5G alternatives to Huawei, Washington is also a clear winner from the emergence of Open RAN.

https://www.mei.edu/publications/...open-ran-key-its-tech-sovereignty  

Dec 2, 2021,07:45am EST|663 views
Open RAN: Big Opportunity, Big Challenges

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/...es/?sh=12cf8e9863d5
 

 

DAUN, 11.02.2022 - 15:44 Uhr

Rakuten TV erweitert kostenloses Angebot mit mehreren linearen BBC-Kanälen

Der VoD-Streamingdienst Rakuten TV erweitert sein kostenloses Angebot mit mehreren linearen BBC-Kanälen. Zu den Programmen zählen BBCDOCTOR WHO, BBC DRAMA, BBC TRAVEL, BBC HISTORY und BBC FOOD. Die neuen Sender sind in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz sowie in Spanien, Frankreich und Italien, gab die VOD- und Streaming-Plattform am 11. Februar bekannt. In Deutschland, der Schweiz und Österreich können Fans von Factual-Inhalten auf den Kanälen BBC TRAVEL, BBC HISTORY und BBC FOOD eine Vielzahl der berühmten und preisgekrönten Lifestyle-Serien der BBC entdecken.

Rakuten TV ist Teil des vereinheitlichten Portfolios von Rakuten Advertising, in dem Werbetreibende Medien über eine Vielzahl von Kanälen kaufen können. Rakuten Advertising und Rakuten TV stützen sich auf First-Party-Data und umfangreiche Erkenntnisse über das Publikum und bieten Marken eine einzigartige Auffindbarkeit, indem sie die Targeting- und Tracking-Möglichkeiten digitaler Formate mit den Vorteilen des Fernsehens kombinieren.

https://www.infosat.de/digital-tv/...it-mehreren-linearen-bbc-kan-len
 

https://www.pocket-lint.com/tv/news/...est-super-bowl-commercials-ads


 

https://www.welcometothejungle.com/en/companies/...n-advertising/tech  

Was ist Rakuten Affiliate Network?

Rakuten Advertising gibt an, zum inzwischen “achten Mal nacheinander zum Affiliate-Marketing-Netzwerk Nummer 1” gewählt worden zu sein und “mehr als 110 Millionen Bestellungen weltweit” erreicht zu haben. Im Moment nennt Rakuten Advertising über 150.000 aktive Publisher weltweit. Tools für Advertiser sind u.a. Attribution, Multi-Touch Commissioning und die Verfolgung von Smartphone-Apps. Influencer-Lösungen des Unternehmens sind u.a. Influencer-Kampagnenmanagement und Networking mit Blogger- und Kund:innen. Im Fokus stehen u.a. Daten, Technologie, künstliche Intelligenz und das Partnernetzwerk der Rakuten (Zahlungen sind nach eigenen Angaben in 202 Ländern/Regionen in 25 Währungen möglich).

https://omr.com/de/reviews/product/rakuten-affiliate-network

https://rakutenadvertising.com/de-de/  

2022 Super Bowl ads look toward the future — and the past

This year’s ads will be amusing and warm, leading Kelly O’Keefe, CEO of brand consultancy Brand Federation, dub this year the “Ted Lasso Super Bowl.” It’s not just because two of the Apple+ sitcoms’ stars are starring in ads — Jason Sudeikis In TurboTax and Hannah Waddingham in Rakuten.

https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/02/11/...d-the-future-and-the-past/  

Affiliate Marketing 101 - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGAwHLOfRBA&t=52s

Affiliate Marketing Tutorial For Beginners 2022 (Step by Step) - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-Bof0SU7ZI  

Rakuten Mobile announced that it will expand the number of stores in the post office, reaching 285 stores nationwide

Rakuten Mobile announced on February 10 that it will expand the installation of application counters at post offices. By the end of March 2022, we plan to open stores at 285 post offices nationwide.
Rakuten announced a business alliance with Japan Post in March 2021, and in June 2021 opened an application counter for Rakuten Mobile on a trial basis in the event spaces of 10 post offices in the Kanto area. rice field.

After that, it was confirmed by conducting a test that customer needs and store management methods were confirmed, and since November 2021, new stores have been set up mainly in urban areas around the world, and as of February 1, 2022, 182 post offices have been set up. An application counter (Rakuten Mobile Post Office) is set up at.

On February 10, Rakuten Mobile announced that it would expand the installation of application counters at post offices and open stores at 285 post offices nationwide by the end of March 2022.

At the Rakuten Mobile Post Office, you can consult about price plans and service contents, as well as make contract procedures.

https://iphonewired.com/news/309869/  

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/documents/results/

Downloads/21Q4videoPPT_S_E.pdf
 

Demonstrating further competitive advantages in an environment where the pandemic has continued

Revenue +18.1% YoY
Non-GAAP OI +37.7% YoY

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/documents/results/
Downloads/21Q4CEOPPT_E%2520.pdf
 

Expanding customer base and cross-use of services, achieving higher revenue and profits, and increasing competitive advantages.

FY2021 Revenue +7.4% YoY
FY2021 Non-GAAP OI +9.6% YoY
Rakuten Card Holders Achieved 25mm
Rakuten Bank Accounts Achieved 12 mm
Rakuten Securities Accounts Achieved 7 mm

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/documents/results/
Downloads/21Q4CEOPPT_E%2520.pdf
 

Rakuten Group, Inc. FY2021 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Consolidated Financial Results

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eym8BOo8MMc
 

Rakuten Mobile’s number of contracted lines exceeds 5.5 million lines Rakuten Group reveals in financial results announcement

about 10 hours ago

On February 14, Rakuten Group announced its full-year 2021 and fourth-quarter financial results. Rakuten Mobile has revealed that as of February 2022, the total number of contracted lines for MNO services and MVNO services has exceeded 5.5 million lines.

Mobile segment sales up 31.9% year-on-year

According to the “FY2021 Full-Year and Fourth Quarter Financial Results” released by Rakuten Group, revenue in the mobile segment for FY2021 was 227.5 billion yen, a significant increase of 31.9% from the previous year.

Factors contributing to the increase in sales include the gradual contribution to sales from users who have finished applying the one-year free campaign, the increase in device sales, and the recording of sales of the communication platform business “Rakuten Symphony.”

https://iphonewired.com/news/311114/  

By Juan Pedro Tomás February 14, 2022

Rakuten Symphony announced the expansion of its operations across the U.K., France and Germany.
The Japanese company noted that this expansion will allow the firm to support the business operations and growth in the European market and collaboration with operators and vendors in the region to support the transformation of mobile network operations and adoption of Open RAN technologies.

In the U.K., Rakuten Symphony will be based in London and is focused on 4G and 5G Open RAN software and hardware development and testing for Rakuten Symphony, leveraging and expanding recently acquired Altiostar Networks’ R&D center and Open RAN engineering lab in the country.

In France, Rakuten Symphony will be based in Paris, while in Germany, the firm’s headquarters will be based in Dusseldorf. In August 2021, German operator 1&1 AG and Rakuten Group announced a long-term partnership to build the former’s mobile network, which will become the fourth mobile network in Germany.

Together with Rakuten, 1&1 will build what it claims to be Europe’s first fully virtualized mobile network based on Open RAN technology, which will feature a 100% cloud-based multi-vendor network architecture.

Rakuten Symphony has headquarters in Japan and local presence in the United States, Singapore, India, Europe and the Middle East Africa region.

https://www.rcrwireless.com/20220214/5g/...nounces-european-expansion  

I24 hours ago

For too long in telecoms, the time of network operators has been mistreated. For too long they’ve been asked to wait for the benefits of next-gen tech; to imagine a future of unlimited speed, scale and innovation that’s always just out of reach.

With today’s announcement of Symworld — a platform to help telecom operators scale at the speed of cloud — we’re saying the time is now.

Symworld: How we bring scale to telecom

Symworld is Rakuten Symphony taking the capabilities initially introduced inside the Rakuten Communications Platform to the global market. Now in general availability, new and incumbent network operators can take advantage of intuitive, one-touch access to a suite of next-gen network software apps. The platform can modernize any network and move operations from being coordinated by people and paper to being driven by software and data. And it’s about time.

The successful public cloud providers use their own services first then sell them to others. Rakuten Symphony is the first telecom company to do the same in the cloud-native era and as we have seen that the possible outcomes are transformational. It’s about time to stop accepting the status quo. And it’s about time to challenge the status quo supply chain to truly embrace the new reality and help their customers be successful.

“SYMWORLD IS EVERYTHING OPERATORS NEED TO START AUTOMATING ALL OR PARTS OF THE NETWORK RIGHT NOW.”

TAREQ AMIN, CEO, RAKUTEN SYMPHONY

It’s about time that terms like “open” started to mean something in the present tense and critically, that operators are able to move as quickly as the market necessitates, scaling fast to pursue countless new opportunities.

I hope you saw the news earlier this month about Rakuten Mobile reaching 96% population coverage four years ahead of schedule.

THIS is what we mean when we say unprecedented scale: When we tell you that it’s possible to deliver a world-class network at a pace previously thought impossible while still hitting network cost reduction targets.

A journey that began in Japan

Before Rakuten Mobile became Japan’s fourth major operator in 2019, before we even broke ground on our network, we were told our approach would never work. Open RAN (radio access network) wasn’t ready for prime time, we heard. An internet services company could never make it in telco, was another refrain. But we never deviated in our mission to reimagine telecoms. And since day one, we’ve done nothing but prove the doubters wrong, earning recognition after recognition for the world’s first, fully virtualized, cloud-native mobile network built on open standards.

“MOBILE INDUSTRY TRANSFORMATION WILL NOT BE ABOUT ANY ONE PRODUCT. IT WILL BE ABOUT ADOPTING A SYSTEM MINDSET THAT PRIORITIZES INNOVATION AND SPEED OVER THE SAME LEGACY APPROACHES.”

The journey that began with the creation of Rakuten Mobile in Japan continues with our announcement today. We are taking the technology that disrupted our home market and bringing it to the world. We are bringing the same belief in our ability to operate advanced mobile services in a fraction of the time and cost of conventional approaches, with no compromise to network quality or security, to empower an industry much in need of change.

The future of mobile network delivery is about speed, agility and the ability to compete

Symworld is everything operators need to start automating all or parts of the network RIGHT NOW; to evaluate, trial and deploy open system components like the Open RAN, the RIC (RAN intelligent controller), service assurance, security and customer experience management via apps instead of getting bogged down in long purchase cycles for more products.

“IT’S TIME TO DISRUPT TELECOM. LET’S DO IT TOGETHER, AS FAST AS WE CAN.”

Mobile industry transformation will not be about any one product. It will be about adopting a system mindset that prioritizes innovation and speed over the same legacy approaches. It will be about recognizing the cloud-driven realities of this business and capitalizing on massive opportunity while it’s still here. Because the time is up for waiting for the old guard to change.

At Mobile World Congress, we’ll be taking the wraps off Symworld and showing the industry what we can do to help all of us move forward, swiftly in a common pursuit.

In the meantime, watch this page for more on Rakuten Symphony and Symworld as the show approaches.

It’s time to disrupt telecom. Let’s do it together, as fast as we can.

https://rakuten.today/blog/...e-the-mobile-industry-met-symworld.html  

Establishment of full virtualization technology, our cost-competitive network has expanded.

Achieved 96% population coverage 4 years ahead of schedule Future capex will become steady.

Further reduction of roaming costs in Japan from Q2/22.

Subscribers: 5.5mm (MNO+MVNO) Accelerate customer acquisition by improving network quality.

Group synergies also strong.

global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/documents/results/
Downloads/21Q4CEOPPT_E.pdf  

Rakuten Viber launches Valentine’s Day chatbot, lenses

13 Feb 2022 00:00:00 | Update: 13 Feb 2022 00:42:26

https://businesspostbd.com/corporate/2022-02-13/...-lenses-2022-02-13  

Excellent Development of Internet Services-Sector of Rakuten

In domestic e-commerce services, the mainstay of Internet services, the Rakuten Group is aiming for further growth in gross merchandise sales and revenue by working on various initiatives, including sales promotion activities to cultivate loyal customers and win new customers, promotion of cross-use of services, promotion of the introduction of a common free shipping (shipping included) threshold and further opening up the Rakuten Ecosystem. Services such as the Internet shopping mall “Rakuten Ichiba” and “Rakuten 24”, which sells medical supplies and daily necessities, etc. by online shopping, have continued to see further growth in transaction volume even compared with the previous fiscal year when the Rakuten Group benefited from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic which gave a boost to the businesses. This was because these measures successfully led to the retention of customers who began using the services against the backdrop of increased demand for online shopping following the growth in “stay-at-home consumption”. In the online travel booking service, Rakuten Travel, despite a decrease in transaction volume due to the impact of the continued temporary suspension of the "Go To Travel" program caused by the re-emergence of COVID-19, the gross merchandise sales in domestic e-commerce services exceeded ¥5 trillion in the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. In other Internet services including overseas Internet services, continuous measures to improve cost efficiency and recovery of consumer behavior helped improve the performance of businesses that have been affected by the pandemic. In addition, the Rakuten Group recorded ¥27,827 million in valuation gains on securities related to investments in FinTech-related companies in the investment business. The Company has completed the succession of all but part of the rights and obligations in connection with its logistics business to JP Rakuten Logistics, Inc., a joint venture with Japan Post Co., Ltd., which became an associate of the Company accounted for using the equity method in the third quarter ended September 30, 2021. Accordingly, part of income (losses) of the logistics business, which was recorded in the Internet Services segment until the second quarter ended June 30, 2021, is recorded in share of income (losses) of investments in associates and joint ventures from the third quarter ended September 30, 2021. As a result, revenue for the Internet Services segment rose to ¥1,003,382 million, a 14.7% year-on-year increase, while segment profit stood at ¥107,548 million, a 166.2% year-on-year increase.

(Millions of Yen)

Fiscal Year 2020 Fiscal Year 2021 Amount Change YoY % Change YoY

Segment revenue 874,806 1,003,382 128,576 14.7%

Segment profit 40,396 107,548 67,152 166.2%

global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/documents/results/

Downloads/21Q4tanshin_E.pdf  

Value of a Fintech-company with a net-income of $770 million?

FinTech segment of Rakuten

In FY2021, the FinTech segment recorded revenue of 619 billion yen, up +7.4% YoY, and segment profit of 89.1 billion yen, up +9.6% YoY, achieving both increased revenue and profit. The steady expansion of the customer base and the increasing adoption of each service as a “main service” by customers have contributed to this success. The combined customer base of Rakuten Card, Rakuten Bank and Rakuten Securities grew +89.4% YoY, and cross-use between fintech services continues to increase.

In December 2021, Rakuten Card surpassed 25 million cards issued*5. In addition to this, a recovery in offline consumption led to shopping gross transaction value (GTV) of 14.5 trillion yen in FY2021, up +25.3% YoY. Rakuten Card outperformed the industry, maintaining a high growth rate while total industry GTV growth was sluggish due to the pandemic.

In January 2022, Rakuten Bank surpassed 12 million customer accounts, the largest number among online banks in Japan*6, and its total balance of deposits (non-consolidated) surpassed seven trillion yen as of the end of December 2021. In Q4 FY2021, the number of payroll accounts increased +55.4% YoY, the number of transactions increased +17.4% YoY, and more customers are using Rakuten Bank as their main bank account for daily life.

Rakuten Securities surpassed seven million general securities customer accounts in December 2021, an increase of two million accounts over the last year, when the number of accounts surpassed five million. Since 2018, Rakuten Securities has held the record for the highest number of new account openings in the industry*7 for three consecutive years. Money Bridge, the service linking Rakuten Securities and Rakuten Bank accounts, surpassed three million accounts and four trillion yen in total balance of deposits in December 2021.

In the Insurance business, annualized insurance premiums of new policies increased steadily in FY2021, with new sales of life insurance increasing +15.8% YoY8 and new sales of general insurance increasing +26.8% YoY9. Online sales in particular drove growth, as online applications for Rakuten General Insurance’s automobile insurance increased 2.4 times YoY.

In the Payment business, which includes Rakuten Pay, revenue increased +19.8% YoY. Operating losses improved by 2.6 billion yen on the previous year at the same time as rollout of proactive marketing activities, including campaign support for new merchant signups for small and medium-size businesses impacted by the pandemic that made payment fees effectively free for one year.

https://www.telecomtv.com/content/...ancial-results-highlights-43598/  

Finanzergebnisse der Rakuten Group FY2021 und Q4 FY2021

Veröffentlicht am 15. Februar 2022 von Rakuten

Im GJ2021 verzeichnete die Rakuten-Gruppe ein Umsatzwachstum in allen drei Segmenten: Internet Services, FinTech und Mobile. Der konsolidierte Umsatz wuchs zweistellig um +15,5 % gegenüber dem Vorjahr und belief sich auf 1,68 Billionen Yen. Darüber hinaus betrug der globale Bruttotransaktionswert (GTV) 26,9 Billionen Yen, ein Plus von 20,5 % im Vergleich zum Vorjahr.

Im vierten Quartal des Geschäftsjahres 2021 stieg die durchschnittliche Anzahl der monatlich aktiven Nutzer innerhalb der Rakuten-Gruppe in Japan um 12,2 % im Vergleich zum Vorjahr, und der Anteil der Nutzer, die mehr als einen Dienst nutzen, erreichte mit 74,7 %*1 ein Rekordhoch. Darüber hinaus begannen 35% der Rakuten Mobile-Abonnenten, die zuvor keinen Rakuten-Dienst genutzt hatten, innerhalb eines Jahres nach der Anmeldung für den mobilen Dienst mit der Nutzung von Rakuten Ichiba. Da die wechselseitige Nutzung von Rakuten Mobile und anderen Rakuten-Diensten weiter zunimmt, wird für das Rakuten-Ökosystem insgesamt ein weiteres Wachstum erwartet.

https://www.onlinemarktplatz.de/208621/...group-fy2021-und-q4-fy2021/