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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 17, 2014

Smaller is getting bigger in the satellite business

As emerging space pioneers in China and India race to the moon and Mars, private-sector startups are quietly launching satellites the size of microwave ovens that aim to satisfy much more terrestrial desires.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2014

SoftBank ties up with cloud-based service for business

SoftBank Corp. has tied up with a service for corporate clients that allows workers to access their company's email and presentations via the cloud before destroying the online sessions.
Japan Times
JAPAN / WEDGE
Jan 12, 2014

Pakistanis find niche in used car business

Led by Pakistanis living in Japan, exports of Japanese used cars are growing, thanks to their durability and high technology. In particular, Pakistanis at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) in Beppu, Oita Prefecture, have been very active in the used-car business, using social networking services...
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jan 2, 2014

Google's drive into robotics should concern us all

Over the past year, Google has bought eight robotics companies. Its most recent acquisition is an outfit called Boston Dynamics, which makes the nearest thing to a mechanical mule that you are ever likely to see. It's called Big Dog and it walks, runs, climbs and carries heavy loads. It's the size of...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 23, 2013

From Mikimoto's pearls to ones of publicity wisdom

Having invented a method for creating cultured pearls in 1893, Meiji Era entrepreneur Kokichi Mikimoto set about selling them to the world. Apparently not one for understatement, he once announced he hoped to "adorn the necks of all women around the world with pearls."
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 18, 2013

Sony exploring sale of Gracenote audio-recognition service

Sony Corp., looking to shed units to focus on fewer products, hired Frank Quattrone's Qatalyst Partners to explore a sale of its Gracenote audio-recognition software business, two sources said.
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN WEB WATCH
Dec 17, 2013

Looking at 2013's Japanese social-media scene

In the Japanese social-networking scene, Facebook still isn't dominating the way it does in the United States and many other countries. There are several other networks in Japan, both old and new, that occupy unique positions, though 2013 was an unusually quiet year, with no big takeovers among social-networking...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 15, 2013

Infant tablet devices hit by parents, experts

A newborn baby cannot hold or even swipe at an iPad, but Fisher-Price is providing a way to keep infants glued to the device.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 2013

Line censoring messages in China

In another example of the dilemmas facing Internet companies operating in China, Japan-based instant messaging app provider Line Corp. has been censoring chats among users there, blocking the transmission of politically sensitive words and phrases.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 27, 2013

Sony seeks patent for high-tech 'SmartWig'

Sony Corp. is seeking a U.S. patent for "SmartWig" hairpieces that could help navigate roads, check blood pressure or flip through slides in a presentation.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 22, 2013

Sharp seeks exit from Foxconn cellphone venture

Sharp Corp. is considering ending a contract with Foxconn Technology Group under which the Taiwanese manufacturer makes Sharp-branded phones for sale in China, according to a source.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 18, 2013

Japan Inc. doubles profit on quick cost-cutting moves

Companies that made tough decisions about exiting businesses, closing factories and revamping management led to a doubling of corporate earnings last quarter, now at the highest level since 2007.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 5, 2013

SoftBank taps lucrative game market

Supercell Oy started the year trying to break into the Japanese smartphone game market. By October, it had struck a deal with the nation's second-richest man that valued the maker of "Clash of Clans" at $3 billion.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 2, 2013

Hankyu Hanshin scandal is a by-product of the media's food fetishization

As with every food mislabeling furor, the point in the Hankyu Hanshin scandal isn't necessarily that people are eating bad-tasting or unsafe food, but that their pretensions have been exposed.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 30, 2013

JT to cut 1,600 jobs, close four plants

Japan Tobacco Inc. is cutting 1,600 jobs and closing four domestic factories as part of its plan to boost competitiveness at home and profitability.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Oct 11, 2013

Illegal taps on oil pipeline wreaking havoc on Nigeria

The flames roared 20 meters above the Niger delta swamp for 48 hours; 6,000 barrels of crude oil spilled into the creeks and waterways around the village of Bodo and several people died.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 7, 2013

Areva: New reactors to end uranium slump by 2015

Nuclear power plant operators benefited from a slump in uranium prices after the reactor meltdowns in the Fukushima No. 1 plant. Areva SA, the second-biggest producer of the metal, says that's about to end.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 6, 2013

Female novelist says pregnant women should quit work

The plight of Japan's working women is a subject that often pops up in the media. Female politicians and company executives voice the opinion that it would be good to harness the power of women in Japan, and that the garasu no tenjō (ガラスの天井, glass ceiling) needs to be smashed. But meanwhile,...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Oct 5, 2013

Trouble is brewing on tracks up north

Last week the Fuji TV variety show "Real Scope" covered Japanese railroads. Most of the celebrities in the studio were densha otaku (train geeks), so it was one big love-in for railways and the people who operate them. However, the entire two-hour program focused on only two systems: the super express...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 24, 2013

Japan losing competitive edge due to poor practical training, expert warns

There may be many unemployed young people in Japan, but there are also a lot of companies that can't fill their vacancies due to a shortage of talented applicants, Darryl Green, president of major staffing and workforce solution service company ManpowerGroup, said in a recent interview.
Japan Times
WORLD
Sep 22, 2013

Vetting firms 'rush' through security clearances

When Ileana Privetera started working for the contractor USIS, the firm that vetted National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden and Washington Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis, it sounded like the perfect job. A mother, she would have flexible hours for her family, and she would be helping the country...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 20, 2013

Sony expects price, content to up PS4 sales

Sony Corp. expects the lower price of the PlayStation 4 and wider variety of entertainment services to drive its forecast to sell 5 million units of the game console by the end of March.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 5, 2013

After Snowden revelations, China worries about cyberdefense

China has been seen as the aggressor in cyberattacks, but many worry its own defenses are woeful.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Sep 2, 2013

Tin Man's throne: the rise and fall of a Roppongi royal

Gilbert Otaigbe is the current owner of Black Horse bar and nightclub in Roppongi. At the height of his success in the mid-2000s, he owned at least seven bars, clubs and restaurants.

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building