September 28, 2007 (Tokyo, Japan)–In order to maximize the development and delivery of new media-mixed branding methods and the utility value of e-commerce, Acrodea, Inc. (CEO and President: Junya Tsutsumi), headquartered in Meguro-ku, Tokyo, and Stylife Corporation (CEO and President: Shinji Iwamoto), headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo announced today that the companies reached an agreement for joint marketing and new initiatives in branding and media that draw on the business networks and expertise belonging to both companies.
Leveraging the brand promotion capacity of Stylife, who commands a proprietary media format spanning magazines, the Internet, and mobile connectivity to encompass selected information delivery and shopping access for users with particularly strong interests and discernment towards women's fashions and beauty, and Acrodea's capacity to design mobile content and develop VIVID UI content, the two companies intend to formulate, produce, and deliver attractive UI menu content. Targeting women in their 20's and 30's, Stylife intends to offer highly fashionable UI menus as new media content and UI menus with visual impact to promote products and corporate brands handled by its own media. The two companies will drive development and implementation of new services and usage formats for e-commerce through joint marketing efforts.
VIVID UI is a user interface platform developed by Acrodea for mobile phones, and represents innovative middleware that can integrate various types of multimedia content, such as still pictures, 3D graphics, animation, and video. VIVID UI enables mobile phones that can be readily customized with graphically enhanced menus and standby screens.
The VIVID UI authoring tool incorporates features for creating menu transitions through a visual context, as well as for menu content emulation. By using this tool, handset manufacturers and content providers can easily create compatible content with a wealth of expression. Among NTT DoCoMo handsets, VIVID UI is implemented in the models SH903i, SH903iTV, SH904i, and SH704i (manufactured by Sharp); and N904i (manufactured by NEC).
VIVID Movie achieves sophisticated video processing that can play rich movie content in memory-constrained and CPU performance-limited environments, such as mobile telephones and compact handheld devices. The technology is provided as middleware for mobile devices, and, in conjunction with VIVID UI, can deliver a highly expressive user interface with the adoption of movie content. The high video compression rate means an optimum solution can be achieved for downloaded content also.
Acrodea, Inc., headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a software technology R&D firm involved in middleware technology for mobile terminals. The company is particularly focused on interface technologies connecting between the user and terminal, and currently provides UI (user interface) technologies and email enhancement technologies to the market. We are also applying R&D energy towards the enhancement of graphics performance, which is indispensable in facilitating usage of mobile platform interfaces. Our stance and efforts are a continual commitment to superior products and improving technology, for which we have received recognition worldwide. In addition to Japan and Korea, Acrodea is engaged in business on the global market, including China, Europe, and North America. The company listed publicly on Mothers Exchange of TSE on Oct. 19, 2006, just two years and three months after establishment in July 2004. Acrodea is headquartered in Tokyo, and maintains an overseas presence in Seoul, Korea; and Espoo, Finland; and Newport Beach, California, U.S.A. For more information, please visit http://www.acrodea.co.jp.
Through its own media consisting of the e-zine Look!s, Internet shopping portal Stylife (http://www.stylife.co.jp/) and nuan+ (http://www.nuan.gr.jp), and mobile shopping portal Stylife*Look!s (http://www.syf.jp, official site for the three main carriers), Stylife is developing fashion e-commerce targeting women mainly in their 20's and 30's, and has acquired over 600,000 subscribers (number of actual customers with purchase record) as of March 2007. By leveraging e-commerce expertise and assets accumulated to date, the company is actively engaged in aligning with other media that sustain established followings, such as fashion magazines.
Established in May 2000, Stylife is headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo.
For more information, please visit http://www.stylife.co.jp.
Marketing Department at Acrodea, Inc.
TEL: +81 3-5768-8603
Stylife Corporation
TEL: +81 3-5785-7001
