Sachiko Hirao - The Japan Times

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Sachiko Hirao

For Sachiko Hirao's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

JAPAN

Feb 4, 1999

May deadline set to buy Narita airport land

Are three months enough time to persuade Narita landowners to sell after three decades in which they have steadfastly refused to make way for the New Tokyo International Airport?

JAPAN

Jan 15, 1999

Air Link's members-only approach winning believers

24th in a series of occasional articles on venture businesses

JAPAN

Dec 11, 1998

Auto auctioneer way ahead of information highway

23rd in a series of occasional articles about venture businesses

JAPAN

Nov 24, 1998

WorldCom digs into Japanese market

JAPAN

Nov 17, 1998

Global One alliance profiting from progress

JAPAN

Jul 28, 1998

JNR debt disposal bill stirs heated dispute

JAPAN

Jul 2, 1998

JAL chief aims to run like the Bulls

JAPAN

Jun 30, 1998

Enterprise Spirit: Secondhand-book vendor prices to sell

19th in a series of occasional articles on venture businesses

JAPAN

Jun 17, 1998

Election Equation: Energy of disabled can inspire sea change

Third in a series

JAPAN

May 15, 1998

Weak economy means big business for movers

JAPAN

May 6, 1998

Enterprise Spirit: Forval aims to become one-stop telecom shop

18th in a series of occasional articles on venture businesses

JAPAN

Apr 30, 1998

Crisis in Asia: Taiwan urged to assist struggling neighbors

Although the stability of Taiwan's economy stands out amid the financial crisis in Asia, the island cannot remain an idle spectator as neighbor countries suffer, according to Wei-Te Liu, executive adviser of the Coordinating Council on Sino-Japanese Business Affairs.

JAPAN

Apr 28, 1998

Crisis in Asia: Turmoil points Philippines in right direction

Second in a series

JAPAN

Apr 3, 1998

Enterprise Spirit: Entrepreneur cashes in on Internet telephony

17th in a series of occasional articles on venture businesses

JAPAN

Mar 9, 1998

ANA joins code-sharing with United, Lufthansa

All Nippon Airways, the nation's second-largest airline, announced March 9 that it has reached an agreement for comprehensive partnership, including code-sharing, with United Airlines of the U.S. and Lufthansa German Airlines.

JAPAN

Mar 6, 1998

TWA plans to enter new pact at own speed

JAPAN

Jan 2, 1998

The Telecoms Race: TTNet takes lead in domestic price war

Second of two partsStaff writerDeregulation in the telecommunications sector began to be slowly implemented over a decade ago, but it is only now that the industry is entering cutthroat price competition, accelerated by the imminent breakup of NTT.On Jan. 7, Tokyo Telecommunication Network Co. (TTNet) will start charging 9 yen for local calls of three minutes in the Kanto region, 1 yen lower than the existing service provided by the country's megacarrier Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp.The move is the first major attempt to tap into the local-call market dominated by NTT, which has maintained the rate at 10 yen for the past 21 years.Local calls make up about 60 percent of the country's telephone service market. "We can't compete against NTT without a dense network. We laid a 40,000-km fiber-optic network in the region, which is equivalent to that of NTT," said Yosuke Gomi, a spokesman for TTNet. "Although we are seen as a carrier for corporate users, we are now targeting general users."TTNet is one of 10 carriers affiliated with regional power companies that have built up fiber-optic networks along power lines stretching across the country. The company can charge low rates by expanding its local network and lessening its dependence on NTT's, thereby lowering the access charges it pays to NTT.The carrier will also begin a long-distance service, charging 72 yen per three minutes for weekday daytime calls over more than 100 km, a rate 28 yen lower than that being charged by other long-distance carriers.Although the customer base of TTNet's new service is limited to NTT subscribers in the Kanto region, Yamanashi Prefecture and part of Shizuoka Prefecture, the vast size of the Tokyo metropolitan market, which accounted for 19.9 percent of total outgoing calls from Japan in fiscal 1996, enabled TTNet to decrease its rates, Gomi said. In addition, the carrier's customers don't have to buy special equipment or disconnect from NTT."It is a good strategy," said Akihiro Itoh, an analyst at Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd. "TTNet is trying to attract customers with its low-fare local calls, which are not very profitable to the carrier, and make its profits in the long-distance calls made by these customers." After the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry decided to open up the telecommunications market in 1985, so-called new common carriers opted to start services by linking their own long-distance lines to NTT's local network. By paying access charges to NTT, the firms avoid the huge expense of constructing entirely new local networks, leaving them free to set up long-distance lines to link points in major cities nationwide.Because the local-call market has been dominated by NTT, competition has been focused mostly on long-distance services, and rates have dropped markedly. In 1985, the rate for three minutes was 400 yen. Now the average rate is 100 yen.By the end of November, TTNet had attracted applicants equivalent to 270,000 lines, and hopes to reach out to 10 percent of the users in the Kanto region, Gomi said.The low rates TTNet proposed last summer appear to have intensified the price war. Japan Telecom Co. said it would apply for rate cuts, possibly in the second week of January, to compete with NTT and TTNet, said Koichi Sakata, president of the firm.Last month, NTT said it would cut long-distance rates for three-minute calls to 90 yen from the current 110 yen, starting in February. This is expected to have an annual impact of 80 billion yen. DDI Corp., another long-distance carrier, will also attempt to reduce its rates, perhaps later this year.However, despite the carriers' efforts to narrow the gap with TTNet, observers have pointed out that the resale business in domestic services that was liberalized in summer 1996 has already cut existing rates by between 15 percent and 20 percent."Long-distance services are becoming less profitable to carriers because of their price competition and the entry of the resale business. But it is difficult to know how many users enjoy the service by the resellers," said Hironobu Sawake, a senior analyst at Nikko Research Center, Ltd. Following the lead of TTNet, carriers appear to be looking at local-call and other services as the next stage of competition.In another attempt to tap into NTT's local service network, Japan Telecom is conducting an experiment called "local wireless loop" in which antennas are erected along JR's Yamanote Line to serve a 2-km-wide area on either side of the tracks with a wireless network. Using such a network, Japan Telecom, which has an agreement to use JR's railways to expand its fiber-optic network, can cover the central part of Tokyo where large-scale customers, such as companies, are concentrated.Japan Telecom will continue its experiment with the wireless network until next spring to study its capabilities in commercial services. "The wireless network is the field that is ignored in the discussion on the separation of NTT. So there is room for carriers to compete in the field. The issue is (part of) a technological progress to build up local networks at less cost," said Itoh of Daiwa Institute of Research.Competition is expected to be facilitated by further deregulation this summer as the ministry is expected to abolish the approval system for changing telephone rates to a notification system. "Carriers usually changed fares once a year because of the system required by the ministry. This hinders carriers in setting their rates flexibly," said Shoichiro Ishihara, a spokesman for Japan Telecom.As the traffic of data transmission grows with the spread of the Internet and other computer-related demands, the system of charging for telecommunications may fundamentally change in the future."Rates are set based on time and distance right now. As the volume of data transmission keeps growing, the way to decide the rates will change. Rates will not necessarily accord with distance. There is a way to charge users by the volume of data transmitted," Itoh said.

JAPAN

Dec 31, 1997

Upstart airlines prepare to take to the skies

JAPAN

Oct 31, 1997

Hikari Tsushin rides crest of telecommunications wave

JAPAN

Oct 2, 1997

Economic turmoil won't deter South Korea, trade chief says

Staff writerDespite the current economic turmoil involving major business conglomerates and financial institutions, South Korea says it will maintain its deregulation and liberalization policies."We launched this market principle to strengthen company management, and it should help increase international competitiveness of (Korean) companies," said Lim Chang Yuel, South Korea's minister of trade, industry and energy. Lim visited Japan last weekend to attend the Asia-Europe Economic Ministers meeting.Major South Korean conglomerates experienced financial trouble earlier this year due to investment failures. Financial institutions that extended loans to those industrial groups were hit hard.In the most recent case, a cash flow problem at the Kia Group pushed the eighth-largest business conglomerate and owner of Kia Motors, South Korea's leading automaker, close to bankruptcy. Korea First Bank, which extended loans to the Kia Group, now faces huge loan problems.The economic turbulence hit South Korea just as deregulation and liberalization efforts in labor and finance were being imposed to meet the standards of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. South Korea joined the OECD in December.Lim said these troubled companies are moving toward a solution, citing progress in restructuring efforts and the government's rescue package announced to save Korea First Bank. "In my opinion, all companies have exposed all of their problems," Lim said. "Some other companies expressed their will to accept the troubled firms. So, I expect that action will follow in that direction."He also said failures caused by company mismanagement should be resolved through rehabilitation and change of ownership. He added that he hopes the bitter experience will lead to improved quality of management and increased international competitiveness. "The problems this time can be a good lesson to other companies as well," he said. "They thought that expanding their business can solve cash flow problems. But they will understand that increasing the quality of management is important."Despite the series of financial failures, Lim is confident of the overall performance of the economy, citing stable macroeconomic fundamentals and the recovery of exports under the declining won against the dollar. "South Korea's macroeconomic indicators show speedy recovery," he said. "We estimate the economic growth rate in 1997 at 6 percent. Our economic growth rate is higher than that of Japan. Exports grew very fast in July and August."The government plans to further improve the investment environment for foreigners through deregulation to attract value-added industry and technical transfers, Lim said, adding that the government may even allow 100 percent ownership by Japanese companies.Although the won is falling against the dollar, Lim said the current currency crisis in Southeast Asia will not affect South Korea, citing the ongoing liberalization efforts of the financial market. "In Thailand, the government adopted a policy that does not reflect fundamentals in the exchange market," he said. "Under our system, fundamentals are reflected in the market."Lim also showed confidence that the decline of the won will not be a serious blow to the economy. "Many countries are facing a strong dollar policy," Lim said. "The decline of the won is moderate compared with the yen. Also, the won is more stable than those currencies in Southeast Asia. I don't think that the decline will harm the economy seriously."

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.

The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces

By Stephen Mansfield

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