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JAPAN / STAGING A COMEBACK
Nov 9, 2001

Successful firms have learned importance of patents

It was a big challenge for Canon Inc., one of Japan's top camera makers, to embark on the copy machine business in the late 1960s, as the market was dominated by the U.S. giant Xerox Corp.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 4, 2001

Shaking preconceptions in the land of tourists

A few weeks ago, a friend visited from Europe. It was her first time in Japan and she wanted to see as much of the country as she could. She had purchased the discount JR rail pass that only foreigners can buy in their home countries, but besides that, all she came with was the Lonely Planet guide to...
SOCCER / World cup
Nov 3, 2001

Second chance to buy World Cup tickets

A unique pre-registering system has been introduced to purchase World Cup tickets when the second round of ticket sales starts on Nov. 19, the Japanese World Cup Organizing Committee announced Friday.
BUSINESS
Oct 31, 2001

ISID to tie up with Microsoft unit

Information Services International-Dentsu Ltd. said Tuesday it will form an alliance in the financial solution business with Microsoft Co., the Japanese unit of Microsoft Corp. of the United States.
JAPAN
Oct 14, 2001

Steps drawn up to fight nuclear, chemical threat

Government ministries and agencies have drawn up antiterrorism measures to deal with attacks involving nuclear, biological or chemical weapons, government officials said Saturday.
JAPAN
Oct 13, 2001

Diamond sales shine over Internet

The phrase "a diamond is forever" is used in commercials to tout the value and everlasting luster of the precious gems, but diamonds can be obtained inexpensively at auction or from companies doing business on the Internet.
JAPAN
Oct 9, 2001

Bordering countries may get aid: Tanaka

Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka on Monday suggested Japan may provide additional financial support to Pakistan as well as other countries bordering Afghanistan to help them deal with refugees from the conflict-torn country.
JAPAN
Oct 8, 2001

Out & About

Author to give talk on history of geisha The International House of Japan will host a lecture Friday evening by Lesley Downer, author of the book "Geisha: The Secret History of a Vanishing World," published in 2000, at its lecture hall in Roppongi, Tokyo.
JAPAN
Oct 6, 2001

Ministry told to bolster ex-pats' safety

The public management ministry asked the Foreign Ministry on Friday to take measures to ensure the safety of Japanese living overseas in nations without Japanese embassies or consulates, ministry officials said.
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2001

Panels on defense approve SDF bills

Defense-related panels within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party approved two draft bills Wednesday that would allow Japan to provide noncombat support for any U.S. retaliation over the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and protect U.S. bases here.
JAPAN
Sep 28, 2001

Full text of Koizumi's policy speech to Diet

Following is a provisional translation of the policy speech delivered by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to an extraordinary Diet session that opened Thursday for a 72-day session.
BUSINESS
Sep 27, 2001

Web site goes after foreign investors

The quasi-governmental Japan External Trade Organization said Wednesday it plans to launch an English-language Web site containing Japan-related investment information in an attempt to attract overseas investors.
Events
Sep 18, 2001

Matsushita woes mean more pain for Kansai

OSAKA -- Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.'s announcement that it will post operating losses of 38.7 billion yen in the April-June quarter and begin restructuring shocked the Kansai business community and prompted worries about what it would mean for the region's economy.
JAPAN
Sep 18, 2001

Bin Laden followers may be here

The government has received information that 12 foreign Islamic extremists may have entered Japan shortly before last week's terrorist attacks in the United States, informed sources said Monday.
BUSINESS
Sep 14, 2001

Nissan, Renault make integration effort

Nissan Motor Co. and Renault SA said Thursday they will launch a joint organization later this month to study ways to integrate their information systems as they move toward joint worldwide automotive operations.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 30, 2001

Fish stocks may resolve whaling debate

The International Whaling Commission recently completed its 53rd annual meeting. For the media, highlights included: false accusations of vote buying; the illegal withholding of Iceland's right to vote, decided by a majority when by international law it should not have been a subject for the commission...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 26, 2001

Intimidation, deception -- and that's just the cops

Earlier this summer, when an American serviceman was accused of raping a Japanese woman on Okinawa, the U.S. military authorities were put in a difficult position.
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2001

Japan to get tough on visa checks

The Foreign Ministry plans to set up online computer systems at all overseas diplomatic missions to help prevent blacklisted foreign nationals from entering Japan, ministry officials said Wednesday.
JAPAN / STAGING A COMEBACK
Aug 8, 2001

Nanotechnology is seen having a massive future

AKO, Hyogo Pref. -- In many ways a typical science lab, it is difficult for an outsider to see what goes on at Himeji Institute of Technology's Laboratory of Advanced Science and Technology for Industry -- at least with the naked eye.
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Aug 8, 2001

Treasures to be hoarded

Here's an odd request: have a look in my closet.
JAPAN / STAGING A COMEBACK
Aug 7, 2001

Businesses bustle to board biotech bandwagon

With the mapping of the human genome opening the door to new possibilities for curing diseases and developing medicine, many Japanese companies are running to catch the bandwagon for the emerging biotech business.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2001

People of all ages are turning to a variety of volunteer work

Japanese men and women of all ages are increasingly spending their spare time engaging in a variety of volunteer work, ranging from restoring traditional "minka" wooden houses in the countryside to recycling secondhand computers.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jul 22, 2001

Tarento find beauty is only cosmetically deep

Tonight at 11:30, TBS's documentary series, "World Heritage," will cover the Hiroshima Peace Dome, which has symbolized the atomic bombing since 1945, when it partially withstood the blast that flattened the entire city around it. The dome has been maintained in its damaged state for 56 years as a monument...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 7, 2001

Networking takes root in Asian universities

CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- The magic of the new term "networking" is becoming irresistible. How does it translate when we examine its potential in academia, particularly in the Asia Pacific region?
CULTURE / Books
Jul 1, 2001

Nakasone as No. 1 reformer

JAPANESE EDUCATION REFORM: Nakasone's Legacy, by Christopher P. Hood. London and New York: Sheffield Centre for Japanese Studies/Routledge, 2001. 222 pp., 50 UK pounds (cloth). When neoconservatism was riding high, a leftwing cartoonist drew a pastiche of Edward Hopper's famous painting of a sad roadside...
BUSINESS
Jun 30, 2001

Japan to propose holding an Asian IT conference

Economic minister Heizo Takenaka said Friday he will visit Singapore and Malaysia next week and propose holding an international conference on information technology.
JAPAN
Jun 25, 2001

Disaster plan to be expanded for flooding, landslides, nuclear accidents

The government plans to beef up its disaster prevention plan by the end of March to remedy its inability to effectively react to landslides, high tides, underground flooding and accidents involving nuclear-powered vessels.
JAPAN / INTERNATIONAL RATIONALE
Jun 21, 2001

Localities approach foreign firms to raise tax base

With the economy in the doldrums, cash-strapped local governments have begun warring with each other to attract foreign businesses and the jobs and tax revenue they bring. Touting tax incentives, lower land prices and proximity to factories in related industries, they are encouraging foreign firms to...
BUSINESS
Jun 16, 2001

Kanematsu in insider trading probe

Kanematsu Electronics Ltd. has acknowledged that a board member was involved in an act that could be regarded as insider trading.

Longform

It's back to the classroom for some residents as municipal governments across the country conduct lessons to learn how to use new technologies.
Can aging Japan go digital without leaving anyone behind?