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March 29, 2025
 

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PHONES

An electronic dictionary section at a mass retailer in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward in 2005
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 13, 2025
Electronic dictionary market shrinking in Japan
Sales of electric dictionaries are falling in Japan amid declining birthrates and widespread use of smartphone apps.
The computers and smartphones seized by the Metropolitan Police Department on Thursday in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 28, 2025
Three teens arrested over fraudulent subscriptions to Rakuten Mobile
Police believe the suspects obtained at least about 2,500 subscriptions and sold them for a total of about ¥7.5 million in crypto assets.
The number of fatal bicycle accidents and those causing serious injury that were attributed to cyclists' mobile phone use totaled 28 in 2024, a record high. Similarly, the number of such accidents involving cars driven by drivers distracted by mobile phones rose to the highest on record, at 136 cases.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 27, 2025
Accidents caused by distracted drivers hit record high in 2024
A total of 136 fatal car accidents and those resulting in serious injury due to mobile phone use were recorded last year, the highest since at least 2007.
Murata Manufacturing President Norio Nakajima
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 19, 2025
IPhone parts maker Murata eyes supply chain shift toward India
The company sees growing demand in India and is running simulations for what it would take to dial up its pace of investment there.
The Imperial Household Agency's renewed website is also optimized for smartphones.
JAPAN
Feb 13, 2025
Imperial Household Agency's website optimized for smartphones
About ¥9.6 million was spent on renovating the website and adding a panoramic photo in fiscal 2024.
Customers walk past an Apple logo inside an Apple store in New York in 2018.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 30, 2025
Apple and SpaceX link up to support Starlink network on iPhones
In an under-the-radar move, the latest iPhone software update now supports Starlink satellite technology.
At several high-end restaurants in Tokyo, tatami is becoming a part of the dining experience — not underfoot but as a tabletop place mat for phones.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jan 25, 2025
Why tatami is going from the floor to the dining table
As smartphones have become integral to daily life, they are being incorporated into traditional Japanese hospitality.
Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani says the company sees an opportunity in Japan, which has been a laggard in the adoption of digital and artificial intelligence-powered technologies.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 21, 2025
Rakuten founder defends costly mobile foray with big AI bet
Rakuten Mobile and its 8 million-plus users help train an AI poised to expand the conglomerate’s business, according to billionaire founder Hiroshi Mikitani.
A training session for a new reporting system that the Japan Coast Guard began operating on Saturday
JAPAN
Jan 18, 2025
Japan Coast Guard launches emergency video reporting system
The coast guard hopes the new system will improve life-saving measures in the event of emergencies at sea.
A clinic in the city of Saitama in May 2020
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 11, 2025
Japan may provide support to boost rollout of smartphone-based health cards
The health ministry may provide support to medical institutions and pharmacies to promote the use of digital My Number personal identification and health insurance cards.
Kenichi Tatsumi, 74, chairman of an association for people with visual impairment in the city of Ishinomaki in Miyagi Prefecture, speaks during an interview in November.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 2, 2025
App helping visually impaired in disasters gains traction one year on
The service, which uses the app to read out the names of evacuation centers and other necessary information, was launched in April this year.
The Japanese antitrust watchdog said that Google forced smartphone makers to preinstall its search app on their devices, sources say.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 23, 2024
Japan accuses Google of violating antimonopoly law
The Japanese antitrust watchdog said the U.S. company forced smartphone makers to preinstall its search app on their devices.
Sharp revealed in June that it had started talks on building an artificial intelligence data center with KDDI and system integrator Datasection. On Monday, Sharp said the project will proceed without Datasection.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 10, 2024
KDDI to build AI data center on Sharp's LCD plant site
Construction of the data center in the city of Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, will commence by March, with KDDI aiming to begin operations in fiscal 2025.
A Tokyo couple allegedly used credit cards obtained fraudulently using other people's IDs to buy smartphones, luxury clothing and expensive liquor, according to the police.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 3, 2024
Tokyo couple held for fraud allegedly bought and resold 200 smartphones
Takaaki Saito, 32, and Chiharu Saito, 33, are accused of exploiting multiple stolen identities to obtain credit cards to make the purchases.
The National Consumer Affairs Center reports a growing number of consultations regarding "digital legacies" — data and online services left behind when people die.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 25, 2024
Are you leaving your loved ones digital legacies or headaches?
The National Consumer Affairs Center is getting an increasing number of consultations regarding data and online services left behind by deceased persons.
Positioned as Google's answer to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Gemini aims to tap into Apple's vast user base to expand its footprint in a rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 15, 2024
Google launches Gemini app — with Japanese support — on iOS App Store
The app gives iOS users direct access to Gemini, which was previously accessible only by navigating through the main Google app or a web browser.
Hackers infiltrated the networks of multiple U.S. telecommunications companies to steal customer call records and compromise the communications belonging to a "limited number” of people in government and politics, officials said.
WORLD
Nov 14, 2024
U.S. accuses China of vast cyberespionage against telecoms
The hackers infiltrated the networks of multiple telecommunications companies to steal customer call records and compromise communications.
In the past two weeks, developer DeNA has raked in over $50 million for the Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket app, a free-to-play game that charges for premium features.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 14, 2024
Gotta collect 'em all: New Pokemon trading card game becomes big hit
The novel yet nostalgic app has amassed over 30 million downloads worldwide in the first two weeks of its release.
Operators respond to telephone directory inquiries from Tokyo at a call center in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, in October 1997.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Nov 11, 2024
As NTT ends its Dial 104 service, Okinawa's call centers look elsewhere
Naha and Nago were home to Japan's biggest call center operations, receiving around 125,000 calls a day at their peak in 1999.
Mazuki Takarada, who was arrested last month in connection with the murder of a 75-year-old man in Yokohama, is believed to be part of a series of robberies that have taken place in and around Tokyo since the summer.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 10, 2024
Japanese police seize over 100 smartphones stolen in serial robberies
The police are making gradual progress with more than 50 arrests, but the ringleaders remain at large due to the group's system of anonymity.
Japan unveils new overtourism countermeasures
The majority of tourists in Japan tend to stay in Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto, resulting in overcrowding in popular tourist spots and a strain on transportation systems.
South Korea couple beat same-sex barriers to parenthood
South Korean lesbian couple Kim Kyu-jin (left) and her wife, Kim Sae-yeon, pose with a "pregnant woman" badge during an interview in Seoul last month.
Toyoko Kids: The lonely street children of Tokyo
Many young people who feel neglected at home flock to the Toyoko area to find a community where they can fit in.
Opportunities await the bold in the Year of the Wood Dragon
2024 marks the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac, with the year predicted to be a good time for fresh starts.
Don’t worry about global population collapse
Most projections show the world will hit peak humanity in the 21st century as people choose to have smaller families and women gain power over their own reproduction.
Recent spate of wildfires in Japan and South Korea linked to climate change
Smoke and flames rise from a wildfire in Andong, South Korea, on Tuesday.
Hanami season to have record ¥1.39 trillion economic impact on Japan
Cherry blossoms along a road in Tokyo on Tuesday. The 2025 cherry blossom season is expected to have an economic impact of around ¥1.39 trillion on Japan.
Tokyo Series proves to be big business for MLB — and Japanese companies
An advertisement featuring Shohei Ohtani in Tokyo.
New SDF command will be key for contingency planning, Australian commander says
A Maritime Self-Defense Force SH-60K "Super Auk" from JS Shiranui prepares to land on HMAS Brisbane during Exercise Malabar 2023 while off the coast of New South Wales, Australia.
Japanese wages likely to rise more than 5% again this year
Wages are set for another big increase this year as annual negotiations secure generous agreements.

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