Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket
Barcelona is a city with a special place in Rakuten history. It’s the birthplace of Rakuten TV, it’s the home of Rakuten’s sports partner FC Barcelona and it’s the city where Rakuten’s founder and CEO will take to the stage again this year to share the latest on mobile at one of the world’s greatest tech events: Mobile World Congress (MWC).
At last year’s MWC, Rakuten CEO Mickey Mikitani began to pull back the curtain on Rakuten’s emerging plans to take on Japan’s telecom oligopoly. In April 2018, the Japanese government announced allocation of 4G spectrum to Rakuten for the first time. Since then, Rakuten has been moving at characteristic high speed to prepare for the launch of its new mobile network this fall and, at MWC, Mickey is scheduled to share special insights on this revolutionary journey with a global audience.
https://rakuten.today/blog/rakuten-mwc-2019.html
AYA ONISHI and ISAO HORIKOSHI, Nikkei staff writers February 21, 2019 06:46 JST
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/...k-costs-with-cloud-tech
Japan has some of the most expensive mobile phone plans on the planet, averaging about twice the price of plans in Europe and taking up about 7% of Japanese household budgets. They’re so expensive that even the Japanese government is stepping in to make mobile phone plans more affordable.
One reason behind this is the high cost involved in maintaining decades-old infrastructure. Since Rakuten is starting from scratch, this isn’t a problem we will face. Rakuten won’t need to support legacy systems such as 3G — we can build for 4G and 5G from the ground up, giving us more mobility to innovate than anyone else.
Before coming to Japan, Rakuten Mobile CTO Tareq Amin played a key role in building the revolutionary Indian MNO Reliance Jio. They leapfrogged the then widespread 2G and 3G systems, relying instead on 4G and voice-over-LTE calls. The service acquired around 100 million subscribers in its first 100 days of operation and is now the tenth largest mobile operator in the world with over 270 million users.
https://rakuten.today/blog/...ocratize-the-mobile-phone-industry.html
ABS-CBN News
Posted at May 30 2018 09:06 AM
MANILA - Viber does not store or share user data and conversations are secured, an official of the messaging platform that is used by at least 25 million Filipinos said Wednesday.
Unlike other internet platforms, typing the word "pizza," for example, will not flood the user's feed with advertisements for pizza, said Viber marketing and business development head for Asia Pacific .
"We don't store any data. We don't have any access to user content," Nayyar told ANC's Early Edition.
"We do not share our data with any social network or big website," he said.
Viber expected further growth in the Philippines as more people adopt smartphones, Nayyar said. In 2016, the company said it had 26 million users, equivalent to roughly a fourth of the population.
"While our penetration is very, very good, the job is not even half done," he said.
https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/05/30/18/...t-store-share-user-data
Currencycloud’s Secret Pipes Are Powering Europe’s Billion-Dollar FX Businesses
Oliver Smith
I cover fintech, crypto and the sharing economy.
Currencycloud is powering the foreign exchange (FX) services of the vast majority of fintech businesses across the continent.
You might be a Travelex, Revolut, Azimo or Starling Bank customer—four companies jointly worth over $3 billion—but it’s Currencycloud that’s actually powering their movement of money across borders.
Over the last 11 years Currencycloud has become the Amazon AWS of foreign exchange, and by the end of 2018 over 350 companies will be using its services to build their own cross-border payments offerings.
Forbes can reveal that the company’s 2017 financial results, due to be published later this week, will show revenue growth of 82% reaching £13.6 million ($17.7 million) last year.
For 2018 the company, which is still loss-making, expects to again double its revenues and Laven is confident that there’s much more room to grow.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/oliversmith/2018/10/...ses/#2ebfb25a345d
Upstart is the first lending platform to leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning to price credit and automate the borrowing process. Upstart has demonstrated strong credit performance1 and maintains one of the industry’s highest consumer ratings according to leading consumer review sites.
$3.1B in originations, 60% of loans fully automate
In addition to its direct-to-consumer lending platform, Upstart provides technology to banks, credit unions and other partners via a “Software-as-a-Service” offering called Powered by Upstart: A customizable lending-as-a-service platform for banks, credit unions and non-bank lenders.
https://www.upstart.com/about#who-we-areRakuten
According to Bloomberg, one source said that the California-based startup is looking to sell shares that would value the business at $500 million to $1 billion.
While a spokeswoman for Upstart said the company isn’t currently raising funds, she does anticipate completing “a final private round” over the next year. She added that the company became profitable last year, while the value of loan transactions increased threefold and gross revenue went up fourfold.
https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2018/...upstart-funding-venture-capital/
On the two ride-sharing companies, Davidson noted that he much prefers Lyft to Uber.
"I am afraid that Uber goes out and it's not a high value and won't do that well in the IPO in terms of popping. Lyft on the other hand has got a much cleaner cap table and I think it's undervalued," he explained. "I'm long Lyft and short uber to use market parlance. Lyft to me is the more important offering."
https://www.thestreet.com/video/...uber-says-this-ipo-expert-14850283
BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 24, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Mobile World Congress -- Cisco today announced details of its innovation blueprint with Rakuten Mobile Network, Inc. to build the world's first end-to-end fully virtualized, cloud native mobile network, ready for 5G.
The foundation of the new Rakuten Mobile Network architecture and telco-cloud will extensively use Cisco software and services, and routing and switching hardware. Cisco delivered its best-of-breed portfolio spanning technology from its Cloud, IT and Service Provider businesses, as well as engineering, multi-vendor system integration, security and operations expertise from Cisco Customer Experience to deliver in record time what was considered close to impossible less than eight months ago.
Cisco Customer Experience is the primary systems integrator for the 5G-ready cloud native architecture design and the deployment of RMN's virtualized telco-cloud.
https://investor.cisco.com/investor-relations/...Network/default.aspx
“Rakuten, already a leader in e-commerce and fintech markets has now built a mobile network from the ground up that runs on Intel® Xeon® Scalable processors and uses Intel® FPGAs for acceleration. This end-to-end cloud-native, automated network is innovative in its approach, and will allow Rakuten to rapidly scale mobile services on an agile, software-defined network.”
–Sandra Rivera, Intel senior vice president, Network Platforms Group
https://newsroom.intel.com/news/...native-mobile-network/#gs.oq6828Ic
Overview of the services and technology used for deployment:
•§Nokia full turnkey services including network design, planning & optimization; project management of site acquisition, civil work construction and network implementation.
•§Nokia Cloud RAN including AirScale radios (remote radio heads) and integration into mobile edge cloud
•§Nokia AirGile Cloud-native core functions, including the Nokia IP Multimedia Subsystem
•§Nokia Shared Data Layer to optimize VNFs for the cloud and enable more rapid innovation of services and faster revenue growth
•§Nokia Session Border Controller to secure and control media and signaling streams that cross the edges of the IMS network.Nokia selected as a key partner for Rakuten's
•§Cloud operations, including CloudBand and FlowOne, leveraging a DevOps based framework for the transformation of operations
https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2019/...for-rakutens-end
The documents will give Wall Street a glimpse into whether Lyft is worth the $25 billion valuation it's reportedly seeking. The key questions include how close Lyft is to achieving profitability, how fast the company is stealing market share from Uber and what risks these companies face.
Lyft's IPO filing will show how, unlike Uber, it's squarely focused on the booming American ridesharing market.
"Lyft is much more a bet on a pure-play US ride-sharing market," said Asad Hussain, emerging tech analyst at PitchBook, a research firm that covers private capital markets. "It's a cleaner growth story."
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/02/24/investing/...t-ipo-uber/index.html
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24 FEB 2019
Rakuten, an e-commerce operator in Japan, plans to roll out a mobile network in the space of just over a year, by taking an innovative approach using an end-to-end cloud-native infrastructure which will be 5G-ready from the start.
He explained its IT organisation understood and mastered virtualisation years ago and is taking the same concept to a telecoms operator, which has been talked about but never been realised. Rakuten’s radio access will be completely virtualised and running virtual network functions (VNF) on a horizontal private cloud, which “is a very big thing in the industry as it will enables us to deploy new services rapidly”.
“We aim to not only disrupt Japan’s telco industry, we want to revolutionise mobile networks worldwide,” Amin said.
https://www.mobileworldlive.com/featured-content/...-mobile-industry/
-Rakuten plans to deploy a disruptive next generation end-to-end cloud-native mobile network with small cells, based on Qualcomm FSM Small Cell Platforms, as a key component-
BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated (QCOM) and Rakuten Mobile Network, Inc. today announced that Rakuten plans to use Small Cell infrastructure products, based on Qualcomm® FSM™ Small Cell Platforms, as a key component of Rakuten's new mobile network expected to be rolled out across Japan.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/...ogies-lay-foundation-090000266.html
26.02.2019 | 10:07
Rakuten und Sercomm kündigen gemeinsam die weltweit erste virtualisierte Small Cell an
Barcelona, Spanien (ots/PRNewswire) -
Durch die Trennung von Verteilereinheit (DU) und Steuereinheit (CU) bietet die virtualisierte Small Cell eine disruptive Lösung für Mobilfunknetze. Durch seine leistungsstarke CU-Computing-Funktionalität kann die virtualisierte Small Cell mit gemeinsamen Verarbeitungs- und kooperativen Funksharing-Funktionen bei Bedarf dynamisch installiert werden. Die virtualisierte Small Cell ermöglicht eine echte native End-to-End-Cloud-Plattform, die nicht nur die Zuverlässigkeit deutlich verbessert, sondern auch ein heterogenes Netzwerk ermöglicht. Die virtualisierte Small Cell unterstützt 4G LTE und lässt sich auf 5G aufrüsten mit erneuerten Verteilereinheiten. Die Einführung eines offenen, virtualisierten und geteilten RAN (Radio Access Network) ermöglicht Telekommunikationsbetreibern Kosteneinsparungen und eine schnelle Markteinführung ohne den Aufwand einer herkömmlichen Basisstationsinstallation.
ttps://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2019-02/...small-cell-an-007.htm
3 years ago
Cabify raises $12M from Rakuten to expand in Latam and join the last-mile delivery race
On-demand car service Cabify has picked up $12 million in funding. The company’s Series B is being led by ecommerce giant Rakuten and includes the participation of Seaya Ventures, which led its Series A a year ago along with Winklevoss Capital and Black Vine, the investment vehicle associated to AngelList.
This deal brings the total raised by the Madrid-based startup since its founding in 2011 to $26.5 million. According to the Financial Times, Cabify’s current valuation sits at €100 million.
https://novobrief.com/cabify-funding-series-b/3936/
Cabify raises $120m at a $320m valuation led by Rakuten to take on Uber in Latin America
3 years ago
Cabify, a ride-sharing app based out of Madrid and active in Spain and Latin America, has raised $120 million — money that it plans to use to continue building out its business on both sides of the Atlantic, starting first in Brazil and Argentina. It’s currently active in 14 cities.
The Series C round values the company at $320 million ($200 million pre-money), and it is notable also for who is investing. Rakuten — the Japanese e-commerce giant that also backs Lyft and had invested in Cabify previously — is leading the round, with participation from others whose names are not being disclosed.
https://techcrunch.com/2016/04/20/...o-take-on-uber-in-latin-america/
Spanish ride-hailing app Cabify raises $100 million in fresh round
By Jonathan Keane, May 8th, 2017
Cabify, the Madrid-based ride-hailing app, has reportedly raised $100 million from previous investors including Rakuten, Seaya Ventures, and AngelList.
The new funds will most likely be used to bolster its position in Latin markets where it competes directly with Uber and the Rocket Internet-backed Easy Taxi from Brazil. While the company is Spanish and also active in Portugal, it has focused much of its operations on South and Central America. It’s currently operating in Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Peru, and Argentina, among several other countries.
The company was founded in 2011 and has raised over $140 million in prior funding. Japanese ecommerce giant Rakuten previously invested in the company, contributing to a $120 million Series C round in April of last year.
https://tech.eu/brief/cabify-100-million/
Cabify raises $160m for ride hailing in Latin America as it restructures
23-01-2018 17:02
The Madrid-based start-up operates a ride hailing service in Spain, Portugal and a number of Latin American nations. The Series E funding round was powered by a mix of new and existing investors, including Rakuten Capital, GAT Investments, TheVentureCity, Liil Ventures and Endeavor Catalyst.
“We are thrilled to welcome this new group of investors, and to continue to strengthen our relationship with Rakuten Capital,” said Juan de Antonio, CEO of Maxi Mobility.
https://mobilemarketingmagazine.com/...ify-snow-taptica-and-stagedoor
Viber enriches customer experience and increases brand awareness
The number of Viber users has greatly evolved in the past years. According to Statista, Viber currently has over 1 billion registered users, resulting in a tremendous global and wide reach. This respectable figure underlines the popularity of OTT messaging channels which have an immense impact on customers mobile experience as both customer behavior and expectation have not only changed but grown.
Viber, one of the leading OTT channels, is extremely popular, especially in the regions Eastern Europe, South East Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Viber states that over 50 percent of its users are Millennials, 26 percent are between 18-24 years, and 49 percent between 25-35 years of age, whilst 46 percent are female and 54 percent male.
https://dimoco.eu/blog/...ssaging-now-offers-viber-business-messages/
Reuters•February 27, 2019
BARCELONA (Reuters) - Japanese e-commerce firm Rakuten plans to become Japan's fourth mobile operator this year with what its says is the world's first fully cloud-based mobile network, creating a potential template for international expansion.
Rakuten, which started out as a two-man outfit in 1997 and has grown to post annual revenues of $10 billion, is already trialling the network with early users as it looks to run mobile services in a scalable, low-cost way.
"We can disrupt the telecoms industry and bring huge value to customers," Rakuten's founder Hiroshi 'Mickey' Mikitani told a packed presentation at the company's stall during the Mobile World Congress on Wednesday.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/...-mobile-network-goes-180009448.html
Overdrive is the undisputed market leader in the audiobook field and they have the largest reach. The company recently stated that in 2018 were over 185 million ebook loans, which was an increase of 19% from the year prior and there were 88 million audiobook loans, which was a 29% increase from 2017, and the 5th straight year the format as grown.
David Burleigh commented “Audiobooks really are the fastest growing format I think in large part because of Audible’s prominence and popularity. And the library has been an important source of audiobooks, which have been available on CDs for many, many years. A lot of people have known of the library, at least from the CD standpoint, as well as tapes way back when. ”
https://goodereader.com/blog/audiobooks/...-audiobook-report-for-2019
Nachrichtenquelle: Business Wire (engl.) | 27.02.2019
Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT), the world's leading provider of open source solutions, today announced that its open source technologies will be used by Rakuten Mobile Network, Inc. in launching its new mobile network, which is planned to be launched in October 2019. The fully virtualized, end-to-end cloud-native network will allow Rakuten Mobile Network to more agilely respond to customer needs and provide differentiated offerings from legacy mobile vendors, as well as better prepare the carrier to meet the forthcoming demands of 5G technologies. 5G represents a major change for both mobile providers and end users, enabling innovative services to be more effectively and efficiently delivered to consumers with data speeds that can be 100 times faster than 4G networks and with almost zero latency.
Artikel unter:
https://www.wallstreet-online.de/nachricht/...pen-source-technologies