Some months ago we launched a Japanese version of ChinesePod - Mandarin lessons delivered in Japanese for a Japanese audience. Since then we haven’t seen the level of traction we would like to see and so we’ve decided to retire it for the moment.
Part of our approach here is to experiment and try new things. Not all of them work. Sometimes it hurts but you’ve got to let go if it’s not working out.
There will be lots of other experiments. Please just keep letting us know how you feel about them.
MATA NA - It’s too bad, I’m sure it was not an easy decision. The Japanese market, especially the entertainment/education market is a tough nut to crack. I’d like to thank Haruka and Steve for providing me with many great lessons. Steve’s insights into Chinese vs. Japanese culture helped me put together many words and the nuances of words. Haruka always asked the right questions and was a pleasure to listen to.
はるかとちんさんへ。
なんか、しかたがないな、でもぼくはおもしろいかったとおもいました、もいっぱいべんきょうもらう、おつかれさまでした、ありがとう。またこんど上海であいましょう。
Lantian,
Beleive me, this idea appealed very much to me. I don’t know much about Japan and this offered the chance to learn something about it. I was also hoping it woudl also gvie me the chance to go there and see some more if it.
Ken
It helped my japanese a lot though it’s a pod which teach mandarin…I like the hosts though
はるかさん、沈先生、
お疲れ様でした。この数ヶ月たくさん学びました。どうもありがとうございました。またいつの日かお会いしましょう。
Haruka,沈老师，
很辛苦了。这几个月学到了很多东西。感谢你们。再见。
Although I understand the fact that a difficult business decision had to be made to halt the Japanese version of ChinesePod, I don’t think it sat very well with many existing Japanese users. I think the problems were as follows:
1. The announcement was extremely abrupt. There was not even a hint of possible closure beforehand; thus the announcement took everybody by surprise.
2. The website redirects to the English ChinesePod without enough time to read the announcement.
3. The website was immediately closed. There was no time to check or discuss the latest podcasts.
4. The announcement suggested using the English ChinesePod to learn both Mandarin AND English, and it would be like killing two birds with one stone. To some, it might be just rubbing salt into a wound. It certainly did not sit too well with me. Most people listening to the Japanese ChinesePod wanted to learn Chinese, and adding English to the equation just added another hurdle.
5. There was no community involvement. There was a lot of effort spent to get the community to suggest ideas for future lessons and discuss; yet the business decision seemed a bit too hard-handed. It also had no community input beforehand in how to avert the final decision.
The result is several dissapointed users, who have shown their dissatisfaction in their own blogs. I hope you can do something to appease us former Japanese ChinesePod listeners, since this situation is probably a lose-lose situation for all sides.
Jpod TORRENT- Can you put the casts into a torrent and archive it here?
STAGE DOOR LEFT - So what happened with Jpod? I tend to agree with Kazu, at first I thought I got caught by surprise because I hadn’t listened to some of the latest podcasts or kept up with the blog on the Jpod site. The notice and re-direct was too fast for me to translate/read. The exit plan sure seemed to be ‘no plan’.
I think Kazu’s points are well taken. The abruptness was a bit harsh, and there was little feedback for users. It could have been managed better. For this I apologize. I’d be interested to hear from Japanese learners to see if there is anything we can do to help.
Ken
RE: Jpod Torrent — http://www.chinesepod.com/blog.....questions/