I wonder in what shape the Japanese venture capital industry (and entrepreneur scene) would be without social games. Yesterday, TechCrunch Japan reported about Tokyo-based social apps provider gumi getting a “multi-million dollar” sum from GREE, which counts 21 million members in its mobile gaming network. And today, Japan- and Australia-based Istpika says it received $2.5… Continue reading Social Apps Provider Istpika Gets $2.5 Million From DeNA-Backed IncubateFund
Category: News
New Location-Based Service: Mixi Sees 2 Million “Check Ins” In First Month
Mixi, Japan’s Facebook, last month introduced a new function, “Check-In”. As the name suggests, Check-In works much like Facebook Places does: press the “Check In” button on Mixi Mobile (the site’s cell phone version) to broadcast your current location to let your friends know where you are or share info on certain points of interests… Continue reading New Location-Based Service: Mixi Sees 2 Million “Check Ins” In First Month
Sharp Ties Up With Japan’s Largest Video Rental Chain For Content Distribution To Android Tablets
Galapagos, the name of the South American islands where English naturalist Charles Darwin discovered rare species of creatures, is used as an adjective to describe the isolation of Japanese mobile industry from the world standard. But Sharp dared to name their brand new digital tablet product “Galapagos[J]“, in spite of the word’s negative meaning, which… Continue reading Sharp Ties Up With Japan’s Largest Video Rental Chain For Content Distribution To Android Tablets
Answer For What is PROJECTION CLOCK】2名様」！ On Twitter Trending Topics
The strange phrase “PROJECTION CLOCK】2名様」！” appeared on the Twitter Trending Topic sometime early morning in UTS October 4th. (morning to night in Japan Standard Time) That phrase itself is mix of English and Japanese, which means …PROJECTION CLOCK] for 2 persons”! It is a part of full sentence in a marketing campaign run by Nifty,… Continue reading Answer For What is PROJECTION CLOCK】2名様」！ On Twitter Trending Topics
Evernote CEO: A Half Of The Third Party Developers Are Japanese
Silicon valley-based tech start-up Evernote, which has introduced services for note-taking and archiving for PCs and smartphone devices, announced new partnerships with seven Japanese companies on Wednesday. Evernote CEO Phil Libin is now visiting Japan, and he says, “Our Japanese users share almost 18% of our total user accounts, which is the second place in… Continue reading Evernote CEO: A Half Of The Third Party Developers Are Japanese
Connection Search: Facebook Japan And Recruit Launch Job Service For College Grads
Facebook has over 500 million members worldwide, but only 1.4 million of these live in Japan. The company established a subsidiary in Tokyo earlier this year, localized its site in 2008, and released a special version optimized for Japanese cell phones a few weeks back. And now it seems to be time to partner up… Continue reading Connection Search: Facebook Japan And Recruit Launch Job Service For College Grads
Piping Manufacturer Invents New Idea To Control Typhoons With Subs
The Mainichi Shimbun, one of Japan’s major newspapers, reports[J] a manufacturing company called Ise Kogyo[J] in the Central Japan has invented a new idea that enables to let a typhoon downshift its strength with a bunch of submarines. Twenty submarines having special equipments for pumping out cold water from the deep sea to the sea… Continue reading Piping Manufacturer Invents New Idea To Control Typhoons With Subs
Founder Of Japanese Startup Tadacopy Goes Off To The World For His Samurai Backpacker Project
The following interview was held by Tokyo-based Natsuki Yamada who works as an editor and writer for printed and online magazines (for example, Natsuki writes for 10. Magazine). The photos were taken by Tokyo-based photographer and accessory artist Ikumi Mochida (who also does photo work for 10.Magazine). Should young Japanese businessmen open up more to… Continue reading Founder Of Japanese Startup Tadacopy Goes Off To The World For His Samurai Backpacker Project
China’s Rekoo To Distribute Social Games In Japan Through Cell Phone Address Books
Last summer, Beijing-based social games maker Rekoo launched “Sunshine Ranch” on Japan’s biggest social network, Mixi, and caused a sensation (with 5.1 million users today, it has basically become Japan’s “Farmville”). After Sunshine Ranch, Rekoo capitalized on the success by releasing a number of other simulations on Mixi and other platforms (just like Zynga did… Continue reading China’s Rekoo To Distribute Social Games In Japan Through Cell Phone Address Books
Is Steve Stopped At Airport? May Be Fiction But Now Animated
Japan’s tabloid magazine SPA![J] reported that Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs had been barred from taking Ninja throwing stars aboard his private jet plane at an airport in Osaka, and Apple’s spokesman denied it and told Bloomberg News that Steve had visited in Kyoto but the incidents described were a pure fiction. Taiwan’s NMA (Next Media… Continue reading Is Steve Stopped At Airport? May Be Fiction But Now Animated