Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket
Trusted By Over 500,000 SMBs, Bluevine Is Now On Par With The Top 20% Of FDIC-Insured Banks and Savings Institutions Ranked By Deposit Volume
Jersey City, N.J., December 1, 2023 — Bluevine, the one-stop digital banking platform specifically designed for small businesses, today announced it has surpassed $1 billion in managed deposits by its small business banking customers. This significant asset threshold has largely been attracted by Bluevine Business Checking, the company’s unique no monthly fee,1 high-yield SMB checking account with a growing suite of built-in business applications, launched only three years ago – and now puts Bluevine on par with the top 20% of FDIC-insured banks and savings institutions2 ranked by deposit volume, according to the most recent FDIC quarterly report.
Over the past decade since its inception, Bluevine has built a market-leading digital banking platform that has served over 500,000 business owners and delivered more than $14 billion in loans to help simplify financial operations and facilitate access to growth capital for its customers, which have been historically underserved by traditional banks.
“We knew that a checking account could be more than just a utility for business owners, and actually evolve into an essential application to run their companies successfully. The Bluevine approach was to provide greater transparency and value by stripping out the extraneous fees and penalties that exist in traditional business banking along with providing high yield on operating balances. In addition, we built a digital-first experience that eliminated the need for even a single branch visit, and integrated a range of sophisticated business features that would empower customers to streamline their financials – supporting the way they prefer to run their companies,” explained Eyal Lifshitz, Co-Founder and CEO of Bluevine.
“The introduction of Bluevine Business Checking has filled a long-standing void in the market, evidenced by the steady growth rate of customer accounts, deposits, and payments volume in a relatively short time period. Today marks a significant company milestone – we are humbled by and grateful to our customers for trusting Bluevine with more than $1 billion in managed deposits,” Lifshitz continued.
Throughout 2023, Bluevine has added key capabilities to its Bluevine Business Checking account, which offers 2.0% Annual Percentage Yield (APY) on balances up to $250,000,3 with no monthly fees and unlimited transactions as part of its standard plan. Notably, the company recently introduced a small business credit card and launched accounts payable, giving small business owners and their teams sophisticated bill management, automation, user access control, and enhanced payment capabilities. Bluevine also expanded FDIC insurance coverage on balances up to $3 million (12x the industry standard of $250,000) and added an international payments and FX solution in partnership with Wise.
In November, the company launched Bluevine Premier, providing business owners with all the features of the standard plan, plus the opportunity to earn 4.25% APY on their Bluevine Business Checking balances up to $3 million,4 along with 50% off most standard plan payments fees, and priority access to customer support. Designed for scaling companies with growing needs, Bluevine Premier provides APY and payment fees on par with commercial offerings that are typically reserved only for large corporations with much higher balances and volumes of transactions compared to a typical small business.
Bluevine Premier customers who both maintain a $100,000 minimum average daily balance across their Bluevine Business Checking account and sub-accounts and spend at least $5,000 on their Bluevine Business Debit Mastercard® during each billing cycle incur no monthly fee. Businesses that do not meet these criteria can still benefit from Premier for a monthly fee of $95. Business owners can also take advantage of a one-month free trial for Bluevine Premier.
https://www.bluevine.com/newsroom/...llion-in-small-business-deposits
https://patents.justia.com/assignee/altiostar-networks-inc
https://patents.justia.com/assignee/altiostar-networks-inc?page=2
https://patents.justia.com/assignee/altiostar-networks-inc?page=3
German company 1&1 announced the launch of its cloud-native mobile service based on the open RAN standards. The company claims to be the world’s first by introducing an open RAN system that is based on cloud and direct access to 5G and 4G wireless technologies.
In addition to the initial three antenna sites situated in Frankfurt am Main and Karlsruhe the construction of 50 radio masts in cities like Hamburg, Essen, Duesseldorf, Wiesbaden, Mainz, Munich and Freiburg is now complete. 1&1 stated that it has equipped these radio masts with an antenna that are capable of gigabit speeds and connected via fibre-optic backhaul with local edge data centers located within a short distance to ensure optimal performance.
1&1 collaborates with Japanese company Rakuten to develop the Open RAN infrastructure. Other providers include servers made by Dell and Supermicro. They have also routers from Cisco, software from Mavenir and Altiostar ad well ass antennas made by NEC and Communications Components (CCI).
https://www.5gworldpro.com/blog/2023/01/05/...nches-open-ran-network/
Earnings & Estimates Rakuten Group Inc.
Qtr. EPS Est. +7.14 Q4 2023 Qtr. Year Ago -72.35 Q4 2022
Ann. EPS Est. -97.85 FY 2023 Ann. Year Ago -235.00 FY 2022
https://www.wsj.com/market-data/quotes/JP/4755/financials
1&1 bringt 5G-Mobilfunknetz auf Basis von Open-RAN-Technologie an den Start
Ab dem 8. Dezember 2023 ermöglicht 1&1 die Nutzung seines 5G-Mobilfunknetzes mit Smartphones und plant den Übergang zu Vodafone im Sommer 2024. Dabei setzt das Unternehmen auf die innovative Open-RAN-Technologie, um nach eigenen Informationen das modernste Mobilfunknetz Europas aufzubauen.
Ein Jahr nach der Inbetriebnahme des europaweit ersten Mobilfunknetzes auf Basis der Open-RAN-Technologie mit „5G zu Hause“ durch 1&1, erfolgt nun ein nächster Schritt. Ab dem 8. Dezember 2023 wird das 1&1 5G-Netz auch für die Nutzung mit Smartphones freigeschaltet, und somit steht das Netz in vollem Umfang zur Verfügung. Wo das im Aufbau befindliche 5G-Netz noch keine eigene Abdeckung bietet, haben 1&1 Kunden die Möglichkeit, im Rahmen des erweiterten Nationalen Roamings automatisch auf das 2G/4G/5G-Netz von Telefónica Deutschland zuzugreifen. Ab Sommer 2024 plant 1&1, planmäßig auf Vodafone als Partner für Nationales Roaming umzusteigen und dabei schrittweise die Vorleistungen von Telefónica Deutschland zu reduzieren.
Das Ziel von 1&1 ist es nach eigenen Angaben, das modernste Mobilfunknetz Europas aufzubauen. Dabei setzt das Unternehmen vollständig auf die Open-RAN-Technologie. Der Kern des Netzwerks besteht aus einer privaten Cloud in dezentralen Edge-Rechenzentren, der über Glasfaser mit Gigabit-Antennen verbunden sind. Die gesamten Netzfunktionen werden durch Software gesteuert, die auf herkömmlichen Servern läuft. 1&1 gibt an, dass das 1&1 Open RAN im Gegensatz zu anderen Netzarchitekturen, die oft nur von einem Hersteller angeboten werden, über standardisierte Schnittstellen verfügt, die es dem Unternehmen ermöglichen sollen, flexibel mit verschiedenen Ausrüstern zusammenzuarbeiten. Hierbei soll von Anfang an auf Komponenten chinesischer Hersteller verzichtet werden. Die cloud-native Netzarchitektur, die über 500 Edge-Rechenzentren deutschlandweit verteilt, ermöglicht, wie das Unternehmen selber sagt, Reaktionszeiten in nahezu Lichtgeschwindigkeit. In Zusammenarbeit mit 1&1 Versatel werden diese Rechenzentren über Glasfaser an Gigabitantennen angebunden, was ab 2024 die Einführung erster Echtzeit-Dienste ermöglichen soll.
Als Vorreiter der Open-RAN-Technologie gilt der japanische Tech-Konzern Rakuten, der 1&1 als Partner dient. Die Erfahrungen von Rakuten in Japan fließen direkt in das 1&1 Open RAN ein, wodurch mögliche Fehlerquellen gezielt umgangen werden sollen. Die Technologie soll es 1&1 ermöglichen, unabhängig von anderen Netzausrüstern zu agieren und flexibel Produkte und Dienstleistungen von verschiedenen Herstellern einzusetzen. Mit einer speziell entwickelten Orchestrierungssoftware sorgt 1&1 nach eigener Aussage dafür, dass alle Netzkomponenten und -funktionen nahtlos ineinandergreifen. Rakuten spiele dabei eine wichtige Rolle, indem es die Radio-Network-Software liefert und als Systemintegrator sicherstellt, dass alle Komponenten effizient miteinander funktionieren.
https://5g.nrw/...DRAN%2D,zu%2520Vodafone%2520im%2520Sommer%25202024.
Tokyo, December 5, 2023 - Rakuten Securities, Inc. today announced that its general securities accounts have surpassed the 10 million mark, the largest number of non-consolidated securities accounts among Japanese securities companies (based on disclosed information), as of December 2023. To commemorate the 10 million account milestone, the company will launch an official TikTok account and hold a hashtag campaign on X (previously Twitter) starting December 5, 2023.
Since launching in 1999 as the first dedicated online brokerage service in Japan, Rakuten Securities has worked to continually expand and enhance its lineup of services with retail investors top of mind.
In addition to offering the fee-free Japanese stock trading service “Zero Course” and working to enhance the level of security its services provide, Rakuten Securities is committed to providing reliable and intuitive trading tools for stock trading and other related services via cutting-edge stock trading tools ranging from the iSPEED series to MARKETSPEED II that make trading possible on all platforms. In recent years, Rakuten Securities has also worked to develop services tailored to the needs of customers seeking to build their asset portfolio, from the time they make their first investments and throughout their asset-building journey, by expanding its lineup of services designed for long-term use. This includes initiatives such as Point Investment, which allows customers to use Rakuten Points to purchase investment trusts; giving customers the ability to make payments for investment trusts through Rakuten Card and Rakuten Cash; making Rakuten Card available for gold, platinum and silver reserve payments; and Saiken Marche, a service offering bond products from more than 200 companies to customers.
Rakuten Securities has also launched initiatives that enable customers to grow their assets at a reduced cost. From October 2023, the company began offering index funds (global and S&P 500) that can be managed at the lowest cost in the industry, and the Investment Trust Balance Point Program, which rewards customers with Rakuten Points for holding funds in investment trusts. As a result of these efforts, Rakuten Securities has successfully expanded its customer base to 10 million accounts, the largest number*1 of non-consolidated securities accounts among Japanese securities companies (based on disclosed information).
The achievement of surpassing 10 million accounts has been made possible by the invaluable support of Rakuten Securities’ customers. To commemorate the new milestone and further enhance communication with its diverse customer base, Rakuten Securities is launching an official TikTok account, adding to its existing social media accounts on YouTube, X (previously Twitter), LINE and Instagram. In addition, the company will hold various campaigns and events in commemoration of the milestone, including a hashtag campaign starting today with 50,000 yen gift certificates available to be won. For details on campaigns and events, please visit the official site: https://www.rakuten-sec.co.jp/web/campaign/10million_thanks/ (Japanese page)
Rakuten Securities aims to maximize customers’ financial well-being as the brokerage company of choice for all customers – ranging from investment newcomers to seasoned traders. The company will continue expanding its array of services to meet their diverse investment needs.
https://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2023/...2520ec%2520fintech
https://symphony.rakuten.com/blog/...l-edge-cloud-or-die-a-slow-death
Wed, December 6, 2023
TOKYO (Reuters) -Rakuten Group said on Wednesday it plans to sell a large stake in Rakuten Bank to overseas investors, its latest fundraising effort as the Japanese company grapples with heavy debt and losses at its mobile network unit.
The planned sale of 25.5 million shares is equivalent to just under 15% of the online bank, according to LSEG data.
The shares will be priced at between 2,400 and 2,500 yen each, according to a source, comprising a discount of 8.7%-12.3% on Wednesday's closing price of 2,738 yen and raising a maximum of 63.8 billion yen ($433 million).
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/...hares-074706468.html?.tsrc=fin-srch
BARCELONA, Feb. 28, 2021
AT&T* and Rakuten Symphony have signed a collaboration agreement to enhance solutions within the Symworld platform to accelerate network planning and deployment in both greenfield and brownfield environments. The companies aim to develop and bring to market solutions through the platform by drawing on technologies, experience, and expertise currently used for wide scale network deployments by AT&T in the U.S. and Rakuten Mobile in Japan.
AT&T is currently deploying Rakuten Symphony’s Site Manager, a solutions suite within the Symworld platform that simplifies the design and build workflows for network rollouts. The suite is for both wireless and wireline networks and designed to drive significantly faster deployment cycles. As part of the initial phase of the agreement, the companies are integrating AT&T’s homegrown core RANFT technology platform for capacity planning within the solutions suite. The RANFT tool utilizes AT&T experience and expertise on network builds across various topographies and densities and adds a new dimension to Rakuten Symphony’s Site Manager and more specifically RAN Commander for capacity planning within the suite of tools.
Why is this important?
Operators are building their 5G networks differently than any previous generation. As the telecom industry transforms with the large-scale introduction of cloud, open architectures and software and supplier diversity, Rakuten Symphony’s Site Manager, enhanced with AT&T innovations, will empower operators across the globe to plan, deploy, and operate at scale in this new cloud-native and open era. The two companies intend to continue collaborating to develop new capabilities and offer additional solutions to mobile network operators across the globe to simplify, digitalize and automate their mobile network deployments.
https://symphony.rakuten.com/newsroom/...uild-solutions-for-operators
11 hours ago
The world of generative AI is evolving at a remarkable pace. But what headlines are hype, and what has real potential to transform life as we know it?
This was the topic of conversation at the recent Rakuten Optimism 2023 business conference, where several experts joined Rakuten’s Chief Data Officer Ting Cai for a panel on The Future with AI: How Human and AI Collaboration will Transform the World.
Why is AI suddenly everywhere?
An AI expert with decades of experience, Cai kicked off his address by reporting his latest amusing discovery in a Seoul convenience store: a salad, boasting ingredients picked by ChatGPT. Cai sees this as symbolic of how the recent AI boom has brought the tech into the spotlight like never before.
“Not only big companies, but startups, academia and the open-source community are all jumping in to explore the possibilities with the latest advancements of AI technology,” he told the Optimism audience. “Almost every day, we hear news about AI. But what is hype? What is real? In order to tell the differences, let’s take a look at the fundamental technology changes.”
Cai listed several significant evolutions that have taken AI tech to the next level, including how AI models are no longer trained for specific tasks: “Today, that is no longer necessary. We have one gigantic model that is capable of doing so many things.”
How we train these models has also changed: “We used to train the AI models using unsupervised learning – you know the classical technique: We can mask out certain words and let AI guess what the blank is, how to fill the missing words. But today, we can combine that large-scale AI training with human instructions, so we can align the AI model with human values.”
The final thing Cai believes has jumpstarted the adoption of AI tools is the shift from a fixed taxonomy to natural language.
“It’s no longer just a fixed set of menus that only understands certain words. It’s capable of understanding the fundamental human language. Language is so fundamental to human beings,” Cai explained. “The powerful natural language interface truly enables everyone to communicate with AI models.”
Cai thinks that it’s this evolution that has truly delivered AI to the general public: “Now it has universal appeal. I have seen my grandparents and kids, elementary school students, using ChatGPT to help with their daily life.”
AI is for everyone
“How can we make sure that AI is accessible and affordable to small businesses?” Cai posed. “As you probably know, it takes millions of dollars just to train an AI model once. How can we make it more cost effective so that everyone, including small to medium-size businesses, can leverage the latest AI technology?”
There was excitement in the air about the potential value that Rakuten’s powerful big data and diverse lineup of services could bring its customers and partners in combination with AI.
“Rakuten is a unique company. I’m always amazed, still today, about the breadth of Rakuten’s portfolio of products and services across multiple industries. We have deep domain knowledge across multiple industries – fintech, financial services, commerce, marketing, mobile, you name it,” he said. “We have a vibrant ecosystem of more than 90,000 business partners, including 57,000 merchants. Just in Japan we have 100 million users with even more worldwide.”
Cai highlighted Rakuten’s overwhelming presence in Japan’s retail sector, where members have earned some 3.8 trillion loyalty points to date.
“Everywhere you go in Japan you can find points accepted in almost every store. It’s a fun game I personally love to play. We have 28 million Rakuten credit cards, and Rakuten Pay is at 6 million stores,” he declared. “We’re going to leverage our channels to make the technology more reachable.”
Utilizing this strong presence, Rakuten’s AI products can receive immediate and continuous feedback, fueling the development of secure, high-quality products, reviewed and validated by professionals.
“With that, we can build the data assets, continue to enhance the model and ensure safety and reliability to deliver unique value to our customers,” he said. “Security and privacy are super super important. This is not just to comply with regulations. This is super important for us to earn customer trust every day.”
Joining forces with OpenAI
Rakuten Optimism, the company’s largest interactive event, also served as the launchpad for a new collaboration between Rakuten and OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. Head of Strategic Accounts James Dyett joined Cai on the virtual stage to highlight the similarities between the two companies.
“We are so excited to be working with Rakuten because you all are going to be able to bring this technology to so many businesses across Japan and the world,” he told the panel. “One of the topics you and I have been talking a lot about over the past months is the impact that this can have for small business owners. A lot of people are spending time on tasks today that they maybe don’t enjoy, that don’t bring them the full satisfaction of their jobs. We can enable AI to take on a lot of that work so they can spend time on the things that they’re most excited about and are most important for their business.”
“I really feel we share the same common mission to bring AI technology to benefit all of humanity, to create value for society,” Cai agreed. “OpenAI is a very successful startup company, and to me, Rakuten is a collection of startups. We are full of innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.”
Dyett praised Rakuten’s engineering capabilities and the strides it has made in AI adoption so far: “You’ve launched some wonderful products with OpenAI already,” he told Cai. “What gets us really excited is we know that whatever we’re going to do together is going to have a huge impact because of the team that you have.”
Rakuten’s AI journey is already well underway
Cai was joined onstage by Rakuten Group executive officer Emiko Kosaki, who outlined a few of the areas Rakuten is already employing AI tools.
Global mobile messaging service Rakuten Viber has around 1.3 billion users worldwide. The service launched a new ChatGPT-powered chatbot inside the service in early 2023 in both English and Japanese, allowing users to ask questions, create images and more on the fly. The Japanese version has been particularly successful, with users sending some 8 million messages in just a few months.
Rakuten also launched Japan’s first public-facing* ChatGPT-powered “Investment AI Assistant” service on Rakuten Securities, which serves some 9 million accounts domestically. Rakuten Insurance Group has also implemented ChatGPT to help agents with customer interactions, with a view to implementing it for claims processing, operations and marketing.
The panel was also joined by Rakuten Institute of Technology Global Head Ewa Szymanska, who outlined a range of potential e-commerce products. One could empower smaller merchants with small marketing budgets with a simple tool that could automatically create effective marketing campaigns rivaling those of large companies. Another could allow fans of certain products to become brand ambassadors through the power of AI.
“There are just so many things we can do with this new technology, and I’m personally extremely excited,” Szymanska said. “We look forward to working with merchants and customers to come up with ways to really integrate this new technology into our lives, into our work, into our business in a way that’s empowering, entertaining and also responsible.”
Wave three is on the horizon
“In wave one, we did a lot of experimentation, trying to figure out what works,” Cai explained. “In wave two, we’re focusing on Rakuten AI for business, because we believe that’s the prime application that is ready for real applications.”
The next wave is where Cai sees major disruption in the consumer space.
“In wave three, we’re also going to enable Rakuten AI services for consumers,” he declared. While Rakuten’s origins lie in e-commerce, its business scope has expanded into the medical field, telecommunications, fintech and more, and Cai sees boundless opportunity for AI implementation.
“It’s all coming in 2024.”
Cai is optimistic about a future in which AI models can become trustworthy companions for almost every situation.
“Our mission is to augment human creativity with the power of AI. As you know, humans have emotion, creativity. AI is super good at synthesizing large information, creating content, creating drafts and automating tasks. It can have conversations. By bringing that together, we see unlimited potential.”
https://rakuten.today/blog/...ity-rakutens-ai-optimists-weigh-in.html
07 December 2023
Please note currently Rakuten Bank (Japan) is part of FTSE Russell Universe constituent and will be added to FTSE Global Mid Cap Index as per FTSE Global Equity Index Series December 2023 Quarterly Review.
https://research.ftserussell.com/products/...me/getnotice/?id=2611035
I am sure, that Rakuten will not list its credit card business Rakuten Card, which includes the group's lucrative points and payments system, because Rakuten had accumulated enough cash through the offering of additional own shares and the monetizing of parts of Rakuten Bank and Rakuten Securities during 2023.
By Linda Hardesty Dec 5, 2023 12:52pm
As far as the work AT&T will do with Ericsson, Stankey said, “By 2026 we’ll have about 70% of our traffic across infrastructure that effectively will have interfaces that can be opened up for other supply, and that allows us then to think long-term.
https://www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/...dor-market-pursue-open-ran
Maybe Rakuten will monetize the ownership in Cabify during 2024 or 2025, which could result in an amount between $ 500 million and $ 700 million.
By Jason King
Senior Director, Content Strategy Rakuten Symphony
This week I had the difficult job of identifying the session highlights from our very successful expert panel on network automation hosted by TelecomTV.
It was difficult because the panel in question featured a group of extremely passionate tech experts (included our own Geoff Hollingworth, Caroline Chan from Intel, and Mory Lin of Supermicro) speaking for an hour on network automation. Attempting to condense that into a few minutes was no easy feat. However, after much deliberation, here are a collection of the most illuminating quotes and ideas from the group.
Automation journey is just beginning
"Automation is not something new to the industry. It is something that we have been doing for 10 plus years, but we tended to do it in a very localized and domain-centric way. And now I think what we're starting to introduce in this journey is actual automation at the end-to-end system level and that's where you get the promise of true transformation and ultimately autonomy if you've gone down the full journey."
– Geoff Hollingworth, CMO at Rakuten Symphony
This theme was echoed by the results of a poll we took of all the participants asking what percentage of their network is automated. More than half said 25% or less of their network was automated, while only 3% indicated that their network was between 75-100% automated.
This means that there’s a lot of work to do to bring about the kind of system-wide automation that can have a major impact on network operations and new service deployment.
Collaboration is important
This brings up a second theme of the event: collaboration. Open RAN ushered in a new model for network systems that is ripe for automation because it is open, virtualized and has an ecosystem of value-added technology providers.
“I think the operators definitely want to see the three parties (Supermicro, Intel, Rakuten Symphony) working together to lower the total cost of ownership."
– Mory Lin, VP of IoT, Embedded and Edge computing at Supermicro
The collaboration between Rakuten Symphony, Intel and Supermicro is a great example of how technologies at all levels contribute to maximizing the impact of automation.
"When you … break down the big problems into smaller problems then everybody in the circle knows the part that they have to play."
– Caroline Chan, VP of Network and Edge Group at Intel
Automation needs programmable interfaces
Another theme was how the cloud and Open RAN are leading the way in providing programmable interfaces that can be used for network automation.
“… the cloud is a programmable interface so you can remotely control hardware. Open RAN is a programmable interface so you can remotely control radios from anybody and then that feeds into everything you want to do with data."
As more legacy network appliances embrace the open, programmable model, automation can grow in its network impact.
All the panelists acknowledged the difficulty of embracing automation when NetOps organizations are working 24-7 to keep the network running. But in this era of more network complexity and a dramatic business need for new services, the payoff will be great.
You can watch all of the session highlights here, or watch the entire panel discussion on demand for network automation insights from the experts.
https://symphony.rakuten.com/blog/expert-panel-on-network-automation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey27HsCk-Oo
Montabaur / Tokyo / Richardson, December 8, 2023 - With "1&1 O-RAN", the German mobile network provider 1&1 operates Europe's first fully virtualized 5G network based on the new Open RAN technology. After offering Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) since December 2022, mobile services (eMBB) are now also available. Thus, 1&1 O-RAN is now fully functional and available throughout Germany, for example with smartphones. Wherever the 1&1 network, which is currently being set up, does not yet have its own coverage, customers will automatically use national roaming on the Telefónica network, and from summer 2024 onwards on the Vodafone network.
The efficient network control of the cloud-native 1&1 O-RAN is carried out via the leading software and platform from 1&1 technology partner Rakuten, along with a core network from Mavenir. Rakuten Symphony, a Rakuten Group company providing global B2B services for the mobile telco industry and enabling next-generation, cloud-based, international mobile services is responsible for the end-to-end integration of the network. The cloud-native core network is provided by Mavenir as industry’s leading cloud-native network software provider.
Unlike conventional mobile networks, Open-RAN technology consistently separates software and hardware. The antennas are no longer controlled on-site at radio masts but are software-based in a private cloud that 1&1 operates on commercial off-the-shelf servers in hundreds of decentralized edge data centers. Gigabit antennas are connected to these via fiber optics. 1&1 works flexibly with the most secure and best manufacturers via standardized interfaces. Products and services from over 80 companies are already being used in the 1&1 O-RAN, without any dependencies on dominant equipment suppliers from China.
"All network functions are located in our private cloud and are controlled by software. This comes mainly from Rakuten and Mavenir. As system integrator, Rakuten also ensures that all network components interact smoothly. In this way, 1&1 benefits from the extensive experience that Rakuten has gained in recent years in operating the world's first Open RAN in Japan. The full functionality of the 1&1 O-RAN is a major milestone in our company's history," says Ralph Dommermuth, CEO of 1&1 AG.
"As the first provider in Europe to operate a commercial Open Radio Access Network, 1&1 has created a digital beacon with its innovative mobile network. As end-to-end technology partner for 1&1’s network, Rakuten is delivering the efficient and highly automated control of the antennas in the 1&1 Open RAN. Using our specially developed orchestration software, we serve as system integrator to ensure that core network applications interact seamlessly with all other software and hardware components in the 1&1 O-RAN. We are very proud of the result of our joint work with our partners," says Mickey Mikitani, Chairman and CEO, Rakuten Group.
"For the 1&1 O-RAN, Mavenir provides all components in the core network that are required for a state-of-the-art 5G mobile network - cloud-native and interoperable. Our software for the core network runs as container-based microservices on Rakuten Symphony’s platform and serves both fixed wireless access (FWA) and mobile services (eMBB). We congratulate 1&1 on Europe's most advanced mobile network and are proud to be part of this innovation from the beginning," says Pardeep Kohli, President and CEO Mavenir Systems Inc.
About Rakuten Group
Rakuten Group, Inc. (TSE: 4755) is a global leader in internet services that empower individuals, communities, businesses and society. Founded in Tokyo in 1997 as an online marketplace, Rakuten has expanded to offer services in e-commerce, fintech, digital content and communications to approximately 1.7 billion members around the world. The Rakuten Group has approximately 32,000 employees, and operations in 30 countries and regions.
About 1&1
1&1 AG is a listed telecommunications provider based in Montabaur, Germany. The company is part of the United Internet AG Group. 1&1 offers a comprehensive tariff portfolio in its 5G mobile network as well as high-performance broadband connections based on the 1&1 Versatel fiber-optic transport network. It also offers attractive bundled products from mobile and fixed-line networks as well as value-added applications such as home networking, online storage, video-on-demand, smart home solutions and IPTV. While the 1&1 brand addresses value and premium segments, the company appeals to price-conscious target groups with its discount brands.
About Mavenir
Mavenir is building the future of networks and pioneering advanced technology, focusing on the vision of a single, software-based automated network that runs on any cloud. As the industry's only end-to-end, cloud-native network software provider, Mavenir is focused on transforming the way the world connects, accelerating software network transformation for 250+ Communications Service Providers and Enterprises in over 120 countries, which serve more than 50% of the world’s subscribers.
https://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2023/1208_01.html
Read more at:
https://telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/...avenir/105796689
According to its third quarter 2023 appendix presentation, Rakuten Mobile is aiming for monthly EBITDA breakeven by end-2024 and annual EBITDA breakeven in 2025 based on the following metrics:
Achieving 8 million to 10 million subscribers - as compared to 5.12 million as of Sept. 30 - driven by growth in its B2B business;
Raising average revenue per user to JPY 2,500 to JPY 3,000 - as compared to JPY 2,046 as of Sept. 30 - through higher data consumption for the B2C business and expanded offerings for B2B customers;
and lower network and SG&A costs to JPY 23 billion to JPY 25 billion per month.
https://www.reorg.com/rakuten-group-faces-jpy-105b-domestic-bond/
December 1, 2023
As we unwrap the insights for Cyber Week 2023, we got the gift of good news: Rakuten Advertising’s US clients and partners outperformed and outdelivered this holiday shopping season. We saw significant growth year-over-year for clients in key retail verticals including apparel, accessories, footwear, and home improvement as shoppers eagerly sought out the best deals of the season.
Cyber Week 2023 was filled with shoppers filling their baskets, looking for the best deals of the season, and they found them in apparel, accessories, home improvement, and more! Our Rakuten Advertising clients saw serious growth year over year in key retail verticals and our loyalty publishers saw click growth above last year’s benchmarks.
As we reflect on this holiday shopping season, we took notice of shoppers beginning their gift searches earlier, seeking out the most bang for their buck. Economic landscapes may have shifted in 2023, but a constant rings true: consumers were ready to spend. This Cyber Week, we explored real-time data trends and insights across our US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, and Brazil affiliate networks.
2023’s top trends: wallets are open
According to figures from Adobe Analytics, which tracks seasonal e-commerce activity, Cyber Week brought in a whopping $31.7 billion dollars. Cyber Monday has typically been the largest day of the “Cyber 5” shopping days, and this remained accurate in 2023, with Cyber Monday bringing in $12.4 billion alone. Thanksgiving saw $5.6 billion in sales and Black Friday had $9.8 billion in sales, up from 2022 numbers. The combination of strong sales and buy-now-pay-later payment offerings allowed consumers to flex their spending and buy everything on their lists, and more!
Cyber Week 2023 started strong as American shoppers filled their baskets, determined to make this holiday season extra special by getting great deals for everyone on their shopping lists. Armed with their laptops, coupon codes, and shopping wish lists, consumers embarked on a virtual journey through online shopping malls to find the best deals for everyone. From coworkers to children, everyone will be getting something special under the tree.
Thanksgiving Eve
Starting early on Wednesday, unofficially Thanksgiving Eve, consumers saw the discounts roll in as many apparel and accessory brands sent pre-Black Friday discount codes to their loyal customers. These discounts made a difference as click growth for both apparel and accessories started strong, about 2% higher than in 2022, leading to significantly higher order, sale, and conversion metrics year-over-year.
November 22nd saw a 13% increase in orders, a 17% increase in sales, and a solid 11% conversion rate. The high conversion rate proves that consumers were focused on securing those deals from the start. It was a fantastic start to American consumer’s Cyber Week shopping adventure.
Thanksgiving Day
As Thanksgiving arrived, shoppers found themselves grateful for the discounts and in-stock favorites at their top stores. Sales continued to grow YoY for holiday favorites, especially in clothing and jewelry stores, but an unexpected front-runner emerged on Thanksgiving: home improvement. Analysts were pleasantly surprised by home improvement as they hadn’t anticipated the category to be a top sales driver for Cyber Week, but whether DIYing this holiday season or doing an end-of-year renovation, home improvement saw a 11% sales growth YoY.
Black Friday and Cyber Weekend
Black Friday, the top day for online shopping, brought even more excitement and positive year-over-year growth. The Rakuten Advertising network saw apparel clicks increase by 6% compared to 2022, proving that shoppers were excited about the major deals they saw across their favorite brands. It wasn’t just clicks that grew YoY, orders for our apparel clients grew by 11%, and overall sales growth increased by 9% YoY.
Our jewelry category saw similar growth, as they had double-digit increases across all major metrics, top of the list though is same-store sales, as sales grew a whopping 31% YoY this Black Friday. Footwear was also on the mind of many Cyber Week shoppers, from winter boots to a new pair of sneakers, shoppers were ready to open their wallets for some new shoes, leading to a 22% increase in sales YoY.
Cyber weekend saw much of the same, with deals aplenty, shoppers were online browsing the best discounts and promotions to finish up their holiday lists. Overall, our US network saw a 2% increase in clicks on Saturday, November 25th as many retailers bumped up their discount and promotion percentages.
The grand finale: Cyber Monday
Cyber Monday marked the grand finale for Cyber Week and consumers’ online shopping extravaganza! The shoppers who were holding out for the best deals got their reward as Cyber Monday hosted some of the highest and best deals of the entire week and our US network felt this impact with a 3% YoY increase in clicks.
Clicks weren’t the only key metric that rose this Cyber Monday; sales, conversions, and orders were also up in many key retail verticals. Apparel saw an 11% increase in clicks and 9% in sales growth, footwear had 19% sales growth YoY, and both housewares and jewelry were up significantly, over 20% for housewares, and 29% growth for jewelry than in 2022. In addition to key retail verticals, department stores also saw exciting growth, clicks were up 5%, overall sales increased by 17%, and orders increased by 7%, proving that consumers were shopping and spending more YoY, regardless of inflation.
As we unwrap Cyber Week 2023, we realize one constant: affiliate marketing and its many forms have created an e-commerce ecosystem that has allowed brands, publishers, and customers to thrive during peak holiday shopping periods. Our network of clients and partners continue to outperform and outdeliver as shoppers prove they are still willing to spend regardless of economic shifts, as long as they can get a great promotion on everything on their wish list.
For more insights into the affiliate shopper and how to grab their attention, check out our latest blog on the Affiliate Marketing Shopper: Couponer Edition.
*Data is current as of December 4th, 2023 and will continue to be updated through December 8th, 2023.*
https://blog.rakutenadvertising.com/insights/...2023-us-trends-recap/
By Michal Bauernfreund
https://www.viber.com/en/blog/2023-10-23/viber-local-businesses/