Rapid Subscriber Growth Has BeeTV Humming

One of the hottest new mobile phone services in Japan is TV programming produced and edited exclusively for mobile phones.

The provider is BeeTV, launched on May 1 by DOCOMO and Avex Entertainment, Japan's biggest movie and music entertainment company. As a video distribution service, the company spends nearly as much as regular TV stations do on production, so the resulting video quality is surprisingly high.

Unlike mobile TV and video content developed for conventional television sets and movie screens, BeeTV produces and broadcasts content specifically for mobile phone screens and viewing environments, giving special consideration to scripting and photography.

The service includes about 30 programs ranging from dramas and movie blogs—the two most popular genres among primary customers in their teens and 20s—to variety, music, talk, anime and more. In total, hundreds of episodes are available for unlimited, on-demand viewing, all for just 315 yen (about US$3) per month.

In addition to original programming, BeeTV edits trendy new programs, including popular U.S. TV dramas such as Foreign Body and Sorority Forever.

An especially distinctive feature of the programming is the length of each episode—never more than 10 minutes and usually between two and five minutes. While such brevity would never go well with viewers sitting on their living room couches, BeeTV has found that mobile customers on the go like short, highly focused episodes. The trend is another example of how mobile phones are changing modern society with new culture and new lifestyles, as well as incredible convenience and flexibility.

The clearest proof of BeeTV's success is its customer growth: about 80% of those who experience the free one-week trial eventually sign up, which enabled the company to attract a half-million subscribers barely two months after launch.

BeeTV is a trademark of Avex Entertainment Inc.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this publication is accurate. However, NTT DOCOMO, INC. does not accept responsibility for errors or omissions. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the prior written permission of NTT DOCOMO, INC.

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