University researchers are gradually leaving their ivory towers to cooperate with businesspeople and utilize the technology they have developed.

An Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry white paper submitted to the Cabinet on Friday shows that 95 new ventures were established in fiscal 2002 based on technologies developed by university researchers, bringing the total number of such ventures in Japan to 531. There were 144 such ventures in fiscal 1998, rising to 436 in fiscal 2001.

To beef up Japan's industrial competitiveness, the government is reinforcing cooperation between institutions of higher education and industrial sectors.