Upcoming Events/Announcements

Start a Company in Japan

Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar May 25, 2013.

If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan.

This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused.

For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar

Terrie's Take

TT-710 -- Will Abenomics Work? Ebiz news from Japan

In light of the daily onslaught of "feel good" news about Abenomics, those of us in business are starting to wonder when all the positive commentary will translate into actual improved sales and earnings in our own teams.

TT-709 -- All About + JapanTourist.jp Tie-up, e-biz news from Japan

All About Inc., has tied up with Metropolis publisher Japan Partnership Inc., and software company MetroWorks, to co-publish the JapanTourist.jp site.

TT-708 -- Safety and Money - It's All Relative. E-biz news in Japan

This week we thought we'd cover a number of issues relating to safety and how the bigger the problems, the bigger the fudging that goes on to reconcile the solutions with their attendant costs.

TT-707 -- Online Games Challenges for GREE, ebiz news from Japan

GREE spent US$104m in April 2011 to buy out a US games platform operator called OpenFeint. The OpenFeint platform wasn't particularly well built.

TT-706 -- Cool Japan May Not Be So Cool After All. E-biz news from Japan.

The job of the "Cool Japan" fund will be to promote Japanese content, high-status food, and cultural products abroad, and to presumably encourage people to travel to Japan and try them here as well.

TT-705 -- Dangers of Japan's Quantitative Easing Plans, e-biz news from Japan

Under the influence of PM Shinzo Abe, the Bank of Japan declared its new strategy for fighting deflation. The bank said it would embark on its own version of America's Quantitative Easing (QE) program.

TT-704 -- Why Do Deals Get Done in March? E-biz news from Japan.

Corporate planning teams in each company spend most of the year window shopping, and only look to pull the trigger after they've seen everything that is available for that given fiscal year.

TT-703 -- JOBS Act-like Crowdfunding for Japan? Ebiz news from Japan.

The Financial Services Agency may allow crowdfunding websites in Japan to expand from their limited "donations" style of getting cash to start-ups, similar to the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) in the USA.

TT-702 -- New JTA Campaign -- What Makes Japan Unique is Japanese Themselves, ebiz news from Japan

A new JTA video project ran for five months and culminated in the launch of the JTA's new media offering -- a massive collection of 160 videos -- that has been turned loose on the Internet.

TT-701 -- Many More Bankruptcies Next Month? E-biz news from Japan.

While the world looks at Japan and thinks that a recovery is underway, the reality is that up 25% of Japan's functioning (versus dormant) companies are instead tottering on the edge of insolvency.

TT-700 -- Why Kameda May Regret its US Cracker Deal, ebiz news from Japan

Kameda told the Nikkei it was buying MGC because of a familiar reason -- the market in Japan is mature and flat and the firm is looking for growth strategies abroad.

TT-699 -- 2012 Ad Spending Shows Interesting Trends, ebiz news from Japan

Dentsu, the world's largest single-brand advertising agency, has just released the preliminary version of its 2012 report on advertising in Japan.

TT-698 -- Japan's Competition for Immigrants, ebiz news from Japan

Japan's Highly Skilled Foreign Professional visa introduced in July last year targets technology immigrants and offers on a new points system a very easy 5-year work visa with all the trimmings.

TT-697 -- Containing China with Arms Exports

Given China's predilection for confrontation and even armed conflict with its neighbors, Japan will be caught with a difficult decision should China decide to invade the Senkakus.

TT-696 -- Choosing Not to Work Full-time, ebiz news from Japan

The percentage of non-regular to full-time workers is now a record 28.75%, almost 18m people (there are 62m in the workforce), and this is not just a temporary trend.