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April 03, 2025
 

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One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 22, 2024

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Homeless influencers, fantasy boyfriends and bubble-era bars — Kabukicho seems to have it all.
Attendees play the For All Time mobile game on smartphones at the NetEase Games booth at the Tokyo Game Show in the city of Chiba in September last year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 30, 2024

Tencent and NetEase rethink Japan approach as game strategy stalls

The companies are reconsidering or scaling back many of their investments in Japanese studios, after years of spending yielded few hit games.
Sanrio, the owner of the Hello Kitty brand that operates two indoor theme parks, has enjoyed a 93% gain in its stock this year, as the ongoing heat and heavy rain keep visitors away from outdoor entertainment.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 4, 2024

Hello Kitty stock soars 93% as Tokyo heat sends tourists indoors

Ongoing heat and heavy rain have been key factors in keeping visitors away from outdoor entertainment facilities.
Sony last month officially unveiled a digital ledger, Soneium, while other Japanese firms like Toyota explore various blockchain-related initiatives.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 18, 2024

Sony joins a crypto push in Japan as calls grow for looser rules

The question for the government is whether to heed requests from the crypto industry for less onerous rules to lower costs and spur growth.
Wang Tao jumps on his opponent during the Supercard From Shanghai event in Shanghai on Sept. 14. Wang, 23, ran away from home at the age of 17 to become a professional wrestler.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 24, 2024

No pain, no gain: Chinese pro wrestlers fight for mainstream glory

Despite a promising potential domestic market, China's pro wrestling community continues to struggle for recognition and financial stability.
The Nintendo Museum opens to the public on Oct. 2, but unlike the company's all-ages games, the new attraction may be geared more toward older rather than younger gamers.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 25, 2024

A first look inside the new Nintendo Museum

Set to open on Oct. 2, the gaming giant's newest foray into real-world experiences shows flashes of the same creativity that made the company what it is today.
The city of Kyoto boasts historic artifacts and cityscapes that millions are willing to travel thousands of kilometers to see, but such treasures are not cheap to maintain, prompting the city to ask foreign tourists for a helping hand.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 13, 2024

Kyoto partners with e-gift service company to let tourists Donate & Go

The new donation service allows foreign tourists to contribute toward the preservation of cities they visit while receiving a gift in return.
An office worker inside a commercial building at night in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Oct 11, 2024

Widespread overwork and stress found in Japan's arts and health sectors

In the arts and entertainment sector, over 40% of technical staff and stage directors worked 60 hours or more in a week, a health ministry survey found.
Toho's acquisition of GKIDS is a fresh push by Toho to strengthen its resources in animation.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 16, 2024

Toho buys Ghibli animation distributor GKIDS to further overseas growth

The acquisition comes amid a surge in global popularity for Japanese entertainment and fits with Toho's multiyear growth strategy.
Tourists watch the sunset from the beach in Seminyak, Bali, Indonesia. An IPO by Holywings Group, owner of the luxurious three-hectare Atlas Beach Club in Bali, would add to as many as 95 companies planning to list in Southeast Asia’s biggest stock market, according to data from the Financial Services Authority.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 17, 2024

Owner of Bali’s biggest luxury beach club considering IPO to expand across Asia

The IPO would add to as many as 95 companies planning to list in Southeast Asia’s biggest stock market, according to data from the Financial Services Authority.
Toshiyuki Nishida has been a mainstay in entertainment for decades, with an expansive career in film, TV, music and theater.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Oct 17, 2024

Actor Toshiyuki Nishida dies at 76

The actor, known for his roles in works including “Beyond Outrage” and “Tsuribaka Nisshi,” was found dead at his residence in Tokyo on Thursday.
Vending machine enthusiast Kenzaburo Ishida
JAPAN / Society
Oct 24, 2024

Useful even in disasters: Japan's ever-evolving vending machines

Vending machine enthusiast Kenzaburo Ishida breaks down their unique appeal, evolution and crucial role in times of disaster.
Suzumi Suzuki’s “Gifted,” translated by Allison Markin Powell, centers on a hostess working in Kabukicho. Rather than focusing on the protagonist’s occupation, the story plunges the reader into her strained relationship with her dying mother.  
CULTURE / Books
Nov 3, 2024

A nuanced glimpse into the cloistered world of Kabukicho

Drawing on her own experience working in adult entertainment, Suzumi Suzuki crafts a fresh, visceral work for her debut novel, "Gifted"
Ken Kutaragi, the creator of Sony's PlayStation, speaks at the annual Tokyo Game Show in the city of Chiba in September.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 2, 2024

Father of PlayStation says 'everyone told us we would fail'

With revolutionary 3D graphics and titles like "Tomb Raider" and "Metal Gear Solid," the device first hit shelves on Dec. 3, 1994.
Kim Seongmin, president of Free North Korea Radio, edits content for the station at his home on Ganghwa Island, west of Seoul, on Nov. 21. Kim has cancer and was recently told that he has months to live.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 3, 2024

A North Korean voice that Kim Jong Un would like to silence

North Korean defectors have been infiltrating the North with outside media for two decades, through balloons floated across the border or radio broadcasts.
Netflix's subscribers in Japan topped 10 million in the first half of this year, with Japanese content being its third-most-viewed non-English content, after those in Korean and Spanish.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 4, 2024

Netflix Japan subscribers top 10 million

The streaming firm's Japanese-language programming is grabbing attention in the growing market.
Disney and Oriental Land executives pose with Disney characters at the unveiling of an expanded cruise line, in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, earlier this year.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Dec 16, 2024

Tokyo Disney Resort operator eyes cruises for new growth

The company plans to invest approximately ¥330 billion in the project, hoping to launch services in fiscal 2028.
A poster depicting the characters of "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure" in Tokyo's Shibuya Station in 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 28, 2024

Sony's Crunchyroll finds its early lead in anime under attack

Netflix, Walt Disney and Amazon are all digging into their deep pockets to license shows, making it more expensive for anime-steaming site to compete.
Tech in 2025 will face growing resistance to AI, social media and streaming saturation alongside political and cultural shifts driven by Elon Musk, Trump and controversies like a potential U.S. TikTok ban.
COMMENTARY
Jan 5, 2025

AI, Musk and Trump add up to a turbulent 2025 for tech

If the steady stream of tech CEOs visiting Mar-a-Lago is any indication, we can expect Silicon Valley to be more willing to do Trump’s bidding in 2025.
Fans wait in line to meet Webtoon Entertainment creators during the company’s initial public offering at the Nasdaq Market site in New York in June 2024.
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2025

Webtoon invests in Japanese webcomic studio No. 9 as manga booms

Webtoon’s first investment since its U.S. initial public offering in June is meant to strengthen its content pipeline in Japan.
“The Elephant Man” and “Twin Peaks” director David Lynch became a favorite among Japanese moviegoers who flocked to new arthouse cinemas (known as “mini theaters”) popping up around the country in the 1980s and ’90s.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jan 23, 2025

How 'Twin Peaks' turned David Lynch into Japan's favorite weirdo

The director’s work thrived in the early days of arthouse “mini theaters,” and cherry pies and canned coffee fueled the nation's "Twin Peaks" mania.
TV star Masahiro Nakai abruptly announced his retirement Thursday as the fallout from sexual misconduct allegations against him continued to expand.
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2025

Ex-SMAP member Masahiro Nakai to retire amid sexual misconduct allegations

The 52-year-old former SMAP member said his contracts had been wound up, and that negotiations with sponsors were in progress.
Fuji Television's poor handling of sexual misconduct allegations against celebrity Masahiro Nakai has led to an exodus of sponsors from the broadcaster.
JAPAN / Media / FOCUS
Jan 24, 2025

What are the real issues behind the Fuji TV scandal?

Fuji TV's handling of sexual misconduct allegations against TV personality Masahiro Nakai led to a firestorm of public disapproval. Where did it go wrong?
Fuji TV President Koichi Minato (left) and Chairman Shuji Kanoh, also chairman of the broadcaster's parent company Fuji Media Holdings, bow during a news conference in Tokyo on Monday. The two have announced their resignations.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 28, 2025

Fuji TV president resigns over handling of Masahiro Nakai scandal

Koichi Minato has been the target of criticism following the revelation that he became aware of the incident involving Nakai right after it occurred in June 2023.
Hiroki Totoki had taken up more of the leadership burden at Tokyo-based Sony two years prior, when he added the titles of president and chief operating officer to his role as chief financial officer.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 29, 2025

Sony names finance chief Hiroki Totoki as its next CEO

Kenichiro Yoshida, the outgoing CEO, will remain as chairperson of the board.
Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy in action as he tees off on the eighth during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic on Jan. 19.
MORE SPORTS
Jan 29, 2025

Rory McIlroy continues 'pivotal' year at Pebble Beach

Not only does McIlroy have his first TGL experience under his belt, he also began his season with a T4 finish at the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour.
Members of the popular Japanese pop group SMAP, including scandal-plagued Masahiro Nakai (right), perform in Beijing in September 2011.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 29, 2025

A pop-star sex scandal shows the death throes of old Japan

As the leader of a now-defunct boy band SMAP, the 52-year-old Nakai has been a ubiquitous mainstay in Japanese life for decades.
The Japanese government is considering allowing foreign workers under its specified skilled worker program to take orders and serve and cook food at restaurants within inns and hotels.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2025

Japan to ease foreign worker rules for hotel restaurants

The government is considering allowing foreign workers under the program to take orders and serve and cook food at restaurants at inns and hotels.
"Uketsu" is a completely anonymous writer and YouTuber whose odd books — which blend mystery and horror — have become a smash-hit publishing phenomenon in Japan.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 7, 2025

'Uketsu': The internet phantom haunting Japan's bestseller lists

Anonymous author and YouTuber "Uketsu" deals in a quiet horror that has delighted millions of readers.
The entrance to Walt Disney studios in Burbank, California
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 12, 2025

Disney softens diversity criteria used to determine manager pay

Disney is the latest company to soften its focus on diversity, equity and inclusion amid a growing backlash against such policies by mostly conservative groups.
As ‘Buy Canadian’ grows, more U.S. firms say retailers turning away products
Empty shelves with "Buy Canadian Instead" signs are seen in the American Whiskey section of the BC Liquor in Vancouver, British Columbia, on March 10.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
Japan, South Korea and China vow to strengthen trade ties amid looming U.S. tariffs
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yoji Muto (left), South Korean Trade Industry and Energy Minister Ahn Duk-geun (center) and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao during a trilateral meeting in Seoul on Sunday
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
On defense, Japan may avoid Trump's worst impulses — for now
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth chat after reviewing an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Sunday.
No longer a 'bridesmaid': Yuki Tsunoda prepares for the Red Bull pressure cooker
All eyes will be on Yuki Tsunoda as he makes his Red Bull debut at the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend.
Tokyo tech failures lean into misfortune, mistakes and missteps
Tsuyoshi Domoto in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward on March 28. As an entrepreneur, Domoto experienced plenty of setbacks but maintains a positive attitude and continues to pursue his dreams.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
By Johan Brooks

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