The mobile phone could be the answer to the age-old problem which has faced virtually all newspapers throughpout the world - reaching younger readers.
Younger readers were more likely to access news and entertainment services if these were provided via a mobile phone rather than in print form or via a PC, Mr Yasuhiro Kobayashi, strategic planning director with the Japanese publishers Asahi Shimbun, based in Tokyo, told delegates attending the WAN conference.
"The core user of the mobile phone is in his or her 20s," he explained. "We are facing hardships acquiring young readers. The mobile phone could be a good channel to get in touch with the young generation and a tool to increase readers in the future. Even though our base is founded on the newspaper, we need to utilise all types of media to cover all generations."
Mr Kobayashi said that, unlike other forms of media access, mobile phones were incredibly flexible. He pointed out that access to PCs tended to be concentrated during lunch breaks and in the early part of the evening.
"On the contrary, access to mobile phones is high even at night or on the weekend. If you visit Japan, you will find many people checking their mobile phones at the railroad station or bus stop while they wait. They turn dead time to productive time by checking information," he said.
"This is an important aspect of mobile service. Through news sites on mobile phones we can reach users anytime, even when they are out on the street."
Mr Kobayashi told the conference that the Japanese spent heavily on their mobile phones. "According to a survey in 2001, expenditure for clothing, eating out and travel decreased while expenditure for mobile service increased. This tendency is more prominent with the younger generation," he said.
He said that one of the biggest developments for his company was in the area of 3G - third-generation mobile phones. His company had developed streaming video services for 3G phones. It had also launched a video news site.
"Here we distribute breaking news, news on accidents or disasters, traffic information such as delays to flights or trains, emergency information about earthquakes, typhoons, heavy snows. On this site users can personalise the menu and mail service by choosing the area or railroad line they usually use," he explained.
"As the majority of the mobile phone users are younger, we give them a taste of entertainment with the news. When the World Cup was held in Korea and Japan, we provided the national anthem of participating teams so that the subscribers could download the music."
Mr Kobayashi said that using good visuals was always an important factor in attracting younger readers. "We use Java applications for sports news. By using this application, the readers can enjoy the sports results like a game," he added.