Search - ads

 
 
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jun 1, 2010

Japanese Twitter marketing campaigns make some noise

New followers line up for the next creative Twitter campaign. Where will the tweeting flocks fly next?
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
May 30, 2010

IKKO's professionalism; Hidehiko Ishizuka returns to `Doyo Wide Gekijo'; CM of the week: Kincho

The theme of the profile series "Kokoro no Idenshi" (Genes of the Heart; NHK-G, Mon., 10 p.m.) is the "development of professionalism." This week's subject is TV personality IKKO, whose main appeal is his flamboyant feminine behavior and appearance. This being NHK, the focus is on his career as a hair...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
May 23, 2010

Snapping with SMAP in Setagaya; swordplay with Shingo; CM of the week: Sky Perfect TV

"Pussuma" (TV Asahi, Tues., 11:15 p.m.) started way back in 1998, making it one of Japanese TV's longest running variety shows. Eternally hosted by aging idol Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and loud-mouthed actor-comedian Yusuke Santamaria, the nonsensical title is meant to cash in on Kusanagi's membership in SMAP....
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 16, 2010

Reality check, 2010: 'Smoking doesn't cause cancer' (Japan Tobacco)

Every generation has its theme song.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
May 2, 2010

'Zen-Nihon Kaso Taisho,' the trouble with herbivores; CM of the week: Sumisho Fruits

Several weeks ago, NHK profiled Yusei Uesugi, a matte painter who works for George Lucas's Industrial Light and Magic. Uesugi is a major talent in Hollywood special effects, and he got his start as a contestant on "Zen-Nihon Kaso Taisho" ("All-Japan Disguise Awards"), which takes place two or three times...
Japan Times
LIFE
Apr 25, 2010

Tabi-maker steps out in style

Ryo Yonehara is the 30-year-old president of Tabi-ji, a Nara-based company making and selling tabi (traditional Japanese split-toe footwear).
LIFE / Digital
Apr 14, 2010

Tech pushes Japan's music scene; industry won't budge

The music business reinvents itself every 20 years or so — basically every time a new format comes down the pike. But the industry has never faced the kind of fundamental challenge presented by the digital file-sharing revolution.
COMMENTARY
Mar 8, 2010

New device apt to kindle greater interest in reading

The first thing that catches your eye when you open the yousho (imported books) section of Amazon Japan's home page is an advertisement for the Kindle DX Wireless Reading Device. The Kindle DX ad, which first appeared last summer, claims that a reader can perform a wireless download of any of more than...
BUSINESS
Feb 27, 2010

Panasonic, Hitachi TV ads win prizes

The Japan Chapter of the International Advertising Association has conferred the grand prize of this year's TV advertising award on Panasonic Corp.'s commercial featuring its large-screen flat display television Viera, according to the association.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 27, 2010

Toyoda's tears win over Japan

He hasn't bowed in apology. He hasn't resigned. But this week Toyota President Akio Toyoda did perform one of the typical rituals of a Japanese executive under attack: He wept publicly.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Feb 12, 2010

QR code breaking out of the box

Companies and municipalities are still finding new ways to unlock the potential of QR codes in Japan.
BUSINESS
Feb 9, 2010

Toyota confident it has loyal customers

TORRANCE, Calif. — "If there's a problem, we fix it," said Bill Coyne, general manager of South Bay Toyota, sounding frustrated.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Feb 7, 2010

Motivational sport stories, fishermen surviving in a declining industry, and CM of the week: Takefuji

It takes a special kind of determination to make it as a professional athlete, especially when personal problems get in the way. The stories told on "Athlete Kando Gekijo" (Athlete Emotional Theater; TV Tokyo, Wed., 9:54 p.m.) are of people who overcame adversity to excel at their chosen sports.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 5, 2010

'Kazura'/'Boys on the Run'

The odds of two brilliant Japanese comedies opening the same day are high but not impossible, somewhat like the odds of the same director (James Cameron) making two all-time worldwide box-office hits ("Titanic" and that other film about blue aliens).
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Jan 31, 2010

Dysfunctional hairs of a vaunted democracy

NEW YORK — Three recent developments in a span of two days reminded me how dysfunctional and uncivil America's vaunted democracy has become.
JAPAN / Media
Jan 31, 2010

Study finds government support for media is rapidly shrinking

NEW YORK — Government subsidies for the media, which are not widely known but are a long-running source of revenue for publishers, are quietly vanishing just as the industry is struggling to remain commercially viable, according to a new report released Thursday.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jan 18, 2010

Augmented Reality taking it to another level

Augmented reality is coming into its own, revealing more and more hidden layers of info. It's all there for the taking.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 17, 2010

SMAP put on the spot

The most recent edition of NHK's New Year's eve song contest, "Kohaku Uta Gassen," received more attention than usual owing to a number of production coups.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 10, 2010

Fast fashion is not what's ailing Japan's economy

Last fall outspoken economist Noriko Hama caused a fuss with an essay about deflation in the magazine Bungei Shunju. She said that the trend of yasuuri kyoso (low price competition) was "destroying society," and not just in Japan. However, in Japan she singled out the clothing retailer Uniqlo as the...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 3, 2010

Bad boys take a beating in TV ads

When discussing Tiger Woods' fall from grace following revelations of extramarital hanky-panky, the American media make a point of distinguishing his talent from his newly soiled image. Whatever his sins, these media say, they can't take away from his accomplishments on the golf links. However, the damage...
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Dec 30, 2009

Lakers, fans embarrassed on Christmas Day

NEW YORK — Win or lose, Laker fools remain consistently bad sports. Secure a championship at home and they burn the surrounding neighborhood. Have calls go against them in a game already decided in their disfavor and they chuck souvenir foam fingers (I get the imagery) and plastic bottles onto the...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Dec 24, 2009

Web designer Peter Brune

Peter Brune, 45, is a Web designer and photographer who has been a Japanese resident for 10 years. Born and raised in East Berlin, Brune was a world traveler even before he set foot outside the walls of his home: Absorbed in books and glued to the television and radio, he was constantly crossing borders...
JAPAN
Dec 15, 2009

LDP bedfellows out; no biz as usual

Takeshi Miyamoto is a man on a mission, but things haven't been going his way.
JAPAN
Dec 5, 2009

Fukushima returned, repeats SDP threat

Social Democratic Party President Mizuho Fukushima was handed a fourth term Friday without a vote, a day after indicating she would pull her party out of the ruling coalition if the Futenma base is relocated in Okinawa as per a 2006 accord with the United States.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 29, 2009

Cute kittens out to kill you

Cats are easy targets, which is why Shukan Asahi took such a cheap shot at them in the banner headline of its print ads for the Dec. 4 issue: "New-type influenza being spread by cats!?" In the subhead, cat cafes were cited as "hotbeds of infection."
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Nov 24, 2009

How can the government encourage more tourists to visit Japan?

Midori Tsunekawa, 59 Housewife (Japanese)Tourist organizations in every prefecture should offer free or low-cost English-speaking guides. They could show visitors around and help them experience Japan, while teaching them about our culture and customs.
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Nov 19, 2009

Cold cash for hot stoves

You would think that dangerous, outdated kerosene heaters would not still be considered 'modern appliances' in Japan.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Nov 15, 2009

Movie JAL doesn't want you to see snubbed by media

Big-budget movies need all the help they can get recovering their production and promotional costs at the box office, so advertisements stating that the 3 1/2-hour epic "Shizumanu Taiyo" ("The Sun That Doesn't Set") is a "big hit" should be taken with a grain of salt. First of all, every movie released...

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.