DeNA, the company behind one of the big three social networking sites in Japan, Mobage-Town (20m users in Japan), cannot be clearer on its current strategy. It’s called international expansion. Everyone is abuzz of today’s acquisition of Ngmoco, an US iPhone game developer for a staggering USD 400m. The big tide in social gaming is… Continue reading Will DeNA Crack The Japanese Code For International Expansion?
Facebook Sudden Surge In Japan By Notable Web Users
Japan is known as one of the most difficult countries for Facebook. However, there has been sudden Facebook buzz happening in Japanese websphere now for about a week. Tokyo-based social media consultant company Looops Communications counted that there were over 11.7% Japanese Facebook users increase observed in 11 days last week. According to them, the… Continue reading Facebook Sudden Surge In Japan By Notable Web Users
Event Wrap-up: Asiajin Readers Meet-up in Akihabara, Tokyo
On Saturday at Ustream Studio Akiba[J], a livecast facility in an Internet cafe in Akihabara, we had a readers meet-up in Tokyo for the first time in approx. 2.5 years. The meet-up started with Asiajin co-founder Akky’s presentation about our current state. It described Asiajin contributors are always shortstaffed to cover what are happening in… Continue reading Event Wrap-up: Asiajin Readers Meet-up in Akihabara, Tokyo
Event Wrap-up: Asiajin Readers Meet-up in Singapore
I was visiting Singapore in late-September for attending Accelerate 2010 and meeting with great techpreneurs. Thanks to Bernard Leong from Chalkboard, a Singapore-based start-up providing retail promotion solutions for several smartphone platforms, and Justin Lee from Tech 65, a Singapore-based gadget-focused tech blog, we could have a readers meet-up at the country’s geek hub, Hackerspace.SG,… Continue reading Event Wrap-up: Asiajin Readers Meet-up in Singapore
September 2010 Japan IT Links (Part 3)
Continued from (Part 2). Last part of September news which we did not write as a dedicated article. Referred pages are all in Japanese, unless otherwise stated. KDDI au’s First Android Sale Suspended By A Bug On Mail Application Osaka District Public Prosecutors Investigative Team Alleged To Manipulate Timestamp Of A File On Floppy Disk,… Continue reading September 2010 Japan IT Links (Part 3)
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
Asiajin Meetup Tokyo #2 Signup
Venue is now fixed at Akihabara. We will have the second Tokyo meetup this Saturday after two years rest. Please check the following link to join the meetup. http://asiajin.doorkeeper.jp/ Or you may apply via e-mail by scanning this QR-Code and send to the gotten e-mail address. [Update] We have sent an e-ticket to all who… Continue reading Asiajin Meetup Tokyo #2 Signup
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
Asiajin Seoul meet up on October 16th
We proudly announce that the first Asiajin meetup in Seoul will be held on 16th, October (Saturday). Asiajin co-founder, Shunichi Arai, will visit the city and talk about the situation of the Japanese web and startup industry. This will be a great opportunity to meet new friends, and learn about the differences between Korean and… Continue reading Asiajin Seoul meet up on October 16th