30% Japanese Sends E-Mail First To Ask If They Can Make Phone Call

Internet research company Ishare reported [J] that new phone call “manner” emerging, especially among young women in Japan. 40.7% of female and 19.9% male answered that they ask if they can call others by cellphone e-mail. (n=556) So, those people make an appointment for telephone call by e-mail. The reasons they do that are; to… Continue reading 30% Japanese Sends E-Mail First To Ask If They Can Make Phone Call

Startup Weekend Tokyo 2010: Picture Crop Tool Kachop Wins 1st Prize Among Nine Teams

It was Global Entrepreneurship Week between November 14 and 21 when a variety of business development events took place in Tokyo and Kyoto.  In time with this opportunity, there was a three-day tech event called Startup Weekend Tokyo last weekend, which was the second edition here in Japan.   At this event, people having a variety… Continue reading Startup Weekend Tokyo 2010: Picture Crop Tool Kachop Wins 1st Prize Among Nine Teams

JAFCO Invests $6 Million In Japanese Groupon Clone Luxa

Like everywhere else, the Japanese market is full of Groupon clones. Market share-wise, the “original” Groupon (Groupon Japan) is leading after it acquired one of its local clones earlier this year. It’s followed by Piku, the first Groupon-like service in this country. But Japanese venture capital companies still see room for even more coupon services.… Continue reading JAFCO Invests $6 Million In Japanese Groupon Clone Luxa

Japan’s Itochu Invests In Hong Kong And Taiwanese E-Commerce Sites

Major Japanese trading (and Fortune 500) company Itochu is making a foray into the Asian e-commerce space. According to The Nikkei, Itochu made two investments recently, having bought into Hong Kong-based online shopping company Fortune Link (website is currently down) and Taiwan-based PChome. About 10% of each of these sites have been acquired by Itochu,… Continue reading Japan’s Itochu Invests In Hong Kong And Taiwanese E-Commerce Sites

Rakuten Brings “Super Points” Loyalty Program To Buy.Com

Japan’s biggest e-commerce company Rakuten, which currently boasts a market cap of US$9.7 billion, has been relatively quiet after having acquired US-based Buy.com earlier this year (for US$250 million). Now Buy.com is announcing it has introduced a loyalty program called “Rakuten Super Points” on its site. The way it works is pretty simple: much like… Continue reading Rakuten Brings “Super Points” Loyalty Program To Buy.Com

LTE vs. Extention Of Current Techs: Who Brings Us The World’s Fastest Mobile Broadband?

Japan’s largest mobile operator NTT DoCoMo announced at their seasonal press conference that it would launch an LTE (long-term evolution) service called Xi[J] (pronounced as “crossy”) on Christmas eve of this year in Japan’s highly populated areas of Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya.   LTE is collectively known as 3.9G mobile technology standard that allows you to… Continue reading LTE vs. Extention Of Current Techs: Who Brings Us The World’s Fastest Mobile Broadband?

Medical Net Communications Goes IPO On Tokyo Stock Exchange

Japan’s tech IPO market has been drying up dramatically in recent months, but there are still some IPOs happening. Today it was announced that Tokyo-based Japan Medical Net Communications, which operates several sites for medical services in this country (full list here), is next. The company has received approval to list on the Tokyo Stock… Continue reading Medical Net Communications Goes IPO On Tokyo Stock Exchange

Japan’s Prime Ministar Begins Blog

Naoto Kan, Japan’s 94th prime minster who took the position this June, enters into the web by his new blog yesterday, November 18th. The blog, named “Kan-full Blog” [J] after his sirname “Kan” and an English word “full”, which shows his full efforts on communication, also has a pun meaning “camphor” to inject for “revitalizing… Continue reading Japan’s Prime Ministar Begins Blog

Event Report: San Francisco Japanese Tech Entrepreneur Night

As reported last month and a video link presented on October 14, 2010, the SF New Tech Japan Night event was held in San Francisco(SF). The event was sold out with over 260 on-line tickets sold with an additonal 40+ at the door.  Enduring a little jet-lag and some tech culture shock, six start-ups from… Continue reading Event Report: San Francisco Japanese Tech Entrepreneur Night

The Bar Android Opens In Shibuya, Tokyo

Do you have Android mobile? Then let’s go to this bar! My friend’s @Kabayan opens the hangout “Bar Android”  at Shibuya, Tokyo for Android users. 2F Udagawa-cho 37-14, Shibuya, Japan, 150-0042 There is a projector. And there are power supplies, so it’s not necessary for you to mind battery consumption. Gingerbread Cookie! If you can… Continue reading The Bar Android Opens In Shibuya, Tokyo