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Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Jun 16, 2021

How Trump’s trade war built China’s first global fashion giant

Partly due to the trade war, Shein pays neither export taxes on most of its products nor U.S. import taxes, an advantage that tilts the playing field heavily against its rivals.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 9, 2021

ByteDance hires thousands in bid to challenge e-commerce king Alibaba

A burgeoning e-commerce business could help the firm surpass its $250 billion valuation when it goes public.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Mar 20, 2021

Leap of faith: Japan’s religious institutions get innovative in pandemic

Temples and shrines nationwide are experimenting with new ways of meeting the spiritual and emotional needs of parishioners.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 4, 2021

How a 10-second video clip sold for $6.6 million

The video, by digital artist Beeple, was authenticated by blockchain, which serves as a digital signature to certify who owns it and that it is the original work.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 22, 2021

Alibaba and Pinduoduo join fight against looming China food crisis

The battle to supply 1.4 billion people with fresh fruit and vegetables is taking China's e-commerce companies into the country's hinterlands.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 29, 2021

SoftBank's Zozo offers tech glasses to help cosmetics buyers get skin tone right

Japanese online fashion retailer Zozo Inc. on Friday launched skin tone measuring glasses for ordering cosmetics online, making its latest fashion tech offering as it expands beyond apparel.
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Jan 17, 2021

Law enforcement scrutiny drives U.S. extremists into internet's dark corners

Officials warn that online chatter could include early warning signals of planned attacks around the inauguration of Joe Biden in Washington on Wednesday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 23, 2020

Need to get a PCR test? Here’s what to expect from Japan’s new low-cost testing facilities.

With COVID-19 entrenched in daily life, people are more open about testing and the private sector is stepping in to expand testing options.
JAPAN / Explainer
Sep 30, 2020

Japan looks to My Number cards to unlock country's digital transformation

Increased uptake of the controversial cards and an expansion of their associated services are seen by the government as key to achieving digitalization.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 3, 2020

Ant’s huge IPO sets up Jack Ma to escalate war with Tencent

Ant Group’s late-summer IPO filing drove home why the business — backed by 711 million active users that spent $17 trillion through its platform — is headed for potentially the world’s largest stock debut. Yet investors may do well to focus on the long-term threat to its core businesses from...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 3, 2020

Are the tech titans at bay?

Recent congressional antitrust hearing showed that they can no longer avoid the harsh glare of the political spotlight.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 28, 2020

Trump advances bid to weaken shield for Twitter, Facebook and other social media

The Trump administration pressed its offensive against online companies it accuses of censoring conservatives, asking regulators to dilute a decades-old law that social media giants such as Facebook Inc., Twitter Inc. and Google say is crucial to them.
BUSINESS
Jun 1, 2020

Japan's new graduate recruiting fully starts amid coronavirus scare

Major firms in Japan on Monday fully started interviews, written tests and other activities to hire students graduating in spring 2021, with companies and students both struggling to adjust to unprecedented online recruiting methods introduced to cope with the new coronavirus pandemic.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 28, 2020

Tokyo joins world film festivals for 10-day YouTube event

Tokyo International Film Festival's competition programmer says that We Are One is just the start of a more digital-friendly future for festivals.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 2, 2020

How democratic Taiwan outperformed authoritarian China

The free flow of information provides the best defense against the spread of COVID-19.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jan 4, 2020

Predicting Japan's digital trends of the next decade

Last year was all about looking back. Between the end of the Heisei Era (1989-2019) and the decade coming to a close, people appeared to go to extra lengths to reflect on the recent and not-so-recent past (this column included). Now that we’ve entered 2020, though, it’s time to leave the highlights...
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Sep 28, 2019

Social media conversation on Rugby World Cup reflects concern about 2020 Olympics

Netizens have been anticipating the start of the Rugby World Cup in Japan for months now and not just because of the action on the field. While the online masses closely followed and reacted to the Japanese team’s opening match win over Russia — not to mention anything related to the All Blacks’...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Apr 27, 2019

Japan's internet took on a life of its own during the Heisei Era

The story of a recent online phenomenon offers a great snapshot of internet culture in Japan during the Heisei Era (1989-2019). Twitter user @Ninjamaaaaaan posted a blurry photo of a pooch in motion, with its tail swooping in front of its face. It looked vaguely like the canine in the image was throwing...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 20, 2019

Amazon's winner-take-all approach to small businesses

If small businesses are to survive in the digital age, the online economy can't be allowed to be winner-take-all.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 5, 2019

How Narendra Modi’s political priorities ambushed Amazon and Walmart, and benefited India’s richest man

Amazon Inc. and Walmart Inc.'s plans to dominate India's online retail landscape have been ambushed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's political priorities heading into a tightening election.
WORLD
Dec 18, 2018

Sex workers say Tumblr's move to ban explicit images leaves them at risk

Sex workers said they would lose work or be forced to risk soliciting on the streets as Tumblr introduced curbs on sharing explicit imagery on Monday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Dec 15, 2018

SoftBank finds a week is a long time in social media terms

It’s fair to say that commercial enterprises have sometimes struggled to co-exist with social media.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Nov 3, 2018

Shibuya's Halloween havoc may tarnish future festivities

Less than a decade ago, finding any sort of Halloween celebration in Tokyo would have been tough. Then, suddenly, October revelry was everywhere you looked in the capital. And in 2018, the spookiest event of the year has evolved once again in Japan: It’s now being held up as an example of hedonism...
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Oct 6, 2018

Social media lambaste 2020 Olympic volunteer program

Organizers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics have started accepting applications from those hoping to volunteer at the games a little less from two years from now. As you might suspect, Japan’s online community had plenty to say about the issue from the second it went live.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Sep 22, 2018

Social media falls in love with Naomi Osaka as tennis star sparks debate

Naomi Osaka’s women’s singles final victory at the 2018 U.S. Open on Sept. 6 excited netizens in Japan, turning the young tennis superstar into one of the most popular figures online. Her trip to Japan last week only generated more buzz, with users being perpetually wowed by her and serious discussions...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 15, 2018

Start lifetime learning now

We need to depart from the conventional thinking that a majority of learning takes place when we are young and mainly at school.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 26, 2018

Brexit's big short: Hedge funds hired pollsters and cashed in

At 10 p.m. on June 23, 2016, Sky News projected the words "IN OR OUT" across the top of a London building as an orchestral score ratcheted up the tension. "In or out—it is too late to change your mind," declared Adam Boulton, the veteran anchor, seated in a makeshift studio across from Big Ben. "The...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 18, 2018

Beauty giant Shiseido snaps up technology startups to draw young shoppers

Shiseido Co., the Japanese firm that sells Laura Mercier cosmetics and Dolce & Gabbana fragrances, sold ¥1 trillion ($9.3 billion) worth of beauty products last year, mostly in traditional stores where customers can sample brands in person.
Japan Times
WORLD
Sep 15, 2016

Hidden data: the new weapon that could beat hunger

With a single smartphone app, you can now get a pretty accurate forecast of the weather anywhere in the world. That is largely thanks to a decision by science agencies, a decade ago, to put online their satellite data and make it available for free.

Longform

In 2020, 38% of all households were single-person. That figure is projected to rise to 44.3% by 2050.
The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan