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EDITORIALS
Nov 8, 2012

Japan's telecom challenge

Competition in the mobile phone industry has entered a new phase as an increasing number of people use smartphones to enjoy access to the Internet, movies and games. The survival of mobile phone carriers now depends on their ability to provide high-speed transmission services, which are necessary to...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 13, 2012

Softbank's Sprint quest may alter U.S. sector

Softbank Corp. is in talks with Sprint Nextel Corp. over a "substantial" investment to take control of the Kansas-based company, in a move that could potentially reshape the U.S. telecommunications industry, two sources said Thursday.
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 29, 2012

Otosan, Japan's top dog

Upper House election night, 2010. All over the country people are watching television and waiting to see if there will be an upset as the results from polling stations slowly trickle in.
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Apr 20, 2011

In the battle with smart phones is i-mode dead?

Ever since 1999, when the Web-service/portal known as "i-mode" first appeared on Japanese keitai (cell phones), Japan has been hailed as the world leader in mobile phone technology — until recently that is.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Jul 10, 2009

Gundam goes green

Starting tomorrow, prominent Tokyo landmarks — with their fixed steel columns and beams — will likely be feeling a bit inadequate as a new, mobile player is set to rise up and illuminate the capital's skyline.
BUSINESS
Sep 4, 2007

Softbank to focus on small businesses to beat DoCoMo, KDDI

Softbank Corp. expects to gain market share from NTT DoCoMo Inc. and KDDI Corp. by focusing on small businesses.
BUSINESS
Mar 5, 2006

Softbank looks to acquire Japan unit of Vodafone

Softbank Corp. said Saturday it is in talks with Vodafone Group PLC of Britain about buying a controlling stake in Japanese subsidiary Vodafone K.K.
BUSINESS
Sep 1, 2005

TBS to issue 20 billion yen in new shares to partners

Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc. announced Wednesday that it will issue 20.6 billion yen in new shares to major ad agency Dentsu Inc. and several of its other business partners to raise money for new projects.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 29, 2003

Bitfone offers remote program to fix software

Bitfone Corp. of the United States is negotiating with several major Japanese phone makers to sell them its wireless software-repair program, Bitfone Chairman Gene Wang said in a recent interview with Kyodo News.
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2002

Cell phone shipments fall 6.5%, continuing slide

Domestic shipments of mobile phones and personal handy-phone system handsets fell 6.5 percent in June from a year earlier to 4.086 million units, down for the 13th consecutive month, an industry association said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Aug 3, 2001

DoCoMo ups expectations for demand

NTT DoCoMo Inc. has revised upward its projection for domestic demand for mobile phones in 2010 in a sign that it is pinning high hopes on the popularity of phone functions in digital cameras, TV sets and refrigerators, company officials said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Sep 7, 2000

Toshiba transforms for IT revolution

Back in the 1960s, a TV set, a refrigerator and a washing machine symbolized affluence for Japanese households. They were dubbed the "three sacred treasures" -- an analogy to the sword, mirror and sacred bead treasured by the Imperial Household.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2000

Service allows cellphones to replenish debit cards

NTT DoCoMo Inc. plans to experiment from next March with a service that will allow mobile-phone users to transfer money from their bank accounts to plastic cards used for electronic commerce, company officials said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2000

KDD set to lead new advance overseas

The three-way merger of KDD Corp., DDI Corp. and IDO Corp. in October will turn the new firm into a competitive mobile phone and Internet business that will enable KDD to shine, KDD President Tadashi Nishimoto says.
BUSINESS
Mar 20, 2000

Competition spurs flurry of mergers

The world's second largest telecommunications market is undergoing a rapid and radical transformation as deregulation, the Internet and mobile phones alter the way that Japanese people work and communicate.
EDITORIALS
Nov 25, 1999

Racing toward the unwired world

I n 1990, there were 11 million mobile phones in the entire world. Today, there are 50 million in Japan alone. Nearly 400 million people around the globe carry the various makes and models of wireless phones; those ranks swell by about 1 million more every week. Experts predict that within five years,...
JAPAN
Oct 31, 1997

Hikari Tsushin rides crest of telecommunications wave

Staff writer
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 14, 2023

Rakuten is hanging on. It should consider hanging up

Rakuten is selling whatever it can to plug a hole in its finances caused by a misadventure into mobile.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 10, 2023

Rakuten looks for a further $200 million from bond deal

Rakuten tapped the market in November for $500 million at a whopping 12% yield.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 16, 2020

A digital agency would crown Japan's IT strategy

Prime Minister Suga aims to put his own stamp on policy by erasing the government's lag in digitization.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 14, 2017

Rakuten announces foray into saturated Japanese cellphone market

The e-commerce giant aims to become nation's fourth mobile carrier, in a move that threatens to disrupt the cellular phone market oligopoly.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 22, 2017

Amazon's Twitch ready to take on Japan's game-streaming market

Amazon's game-broadcasting and social-video company, Twitch, is stepping up efforts to expand its presence in the nation that invented Mario, Pokemon and the PlayStation.
EDITORIALS
Jul 6, 2017

Apple's iPhone turns 10

The iPhone has changed the world, transforming the lives of billions of people around the world and facilitating a social and economic transition that is still underway.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 2, 2016

Apple hopes for e-money growth in cash-carrying Japan

Apple Inc.'s plan to allow Japanese customers to use iPhones to pay for their daily commute underscores the potential for digital payments to grow in a nation where people still prefer to hold cash.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Aug 10, 2016

Games industry unlikely to try to clone 'Pokemon Go'

Top video game companies, caught off-guard by the runaway success of "Pokemon Go," are wrestling with how to play catch-up after the augmented reality app became a worldwide phenomenon.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 11, 2016

Nintendo's 'Pokemon Go' hit gives early taste of smartphone success

Nintendo Co., which has not yet thrown itself fully into the world of mobile gaming, is giving people a good idea of what a smartphone hit looks like with the success of "Pokemon Go."
COMMENTARY
Apr 4, 2014

African e-money is the next currency killer

All the talk of bitcoin in recent years has overshadowed the e-finance revolution in Africa, India and eastern Europe, where a service called M-Pesa has replaced banking for millions of people who don't have a bank account.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji