Become's Japanese version
The shopping focused search site, Become.com, has opened its Japanese beta version “Become.co.jp” on the 10th. The site users can search the information such as products, reviews, and EC site comparisons in Japanese.
Japan
New "Google mini" released in Japan
On 12th, Google announced the release of new “Google mini” in Lego-ish simple design, the search appliance for mid to small companies. Google picked Japan as the first market for the new “Google mini”, and this version is 100% localized … Read More
Google Japan's ads for mobile
Google Japan’s “Google mobile ads” started on the 7th of April. The ads show up on Google.jp’s search results. In addition to the title (with link to the site) and the description, the ads show a telephone icon, which can … Read More
Japanese Google users like Google Earth
According to the survey by Japan.Internet.com and JR Tokai express search, almost 80% of participants responded as they’ve used Google Japan. Q: Do you use Google? 39.9%: Yes, sometimes 39.0%: Yes, always 18.2%: Have heard about it, but haven’t used … Read More
Yahoo! Japan's keyword input assist
On March 15, Yahoo! Japan opened the beta version of Keyword input assist. When a search user types the first several character of the search word, it will display a list of related keywords. This function is available to the … Read More
Japan blog association
Japan Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has established Japan Blog Association on February 28, 2006. Its purpose is to perform research, study, support, etc. about Blog, and to provide the information and environment for Blog users to enjoy blogging … Read More
280Bil. yen – Japan online ads market
Dentsu has published “Advertising Costs in Japan, 2005” on February 20th, 2006. The report shows that the total internet advertisement spending in 2005 is 280.8 billion yen (approx. $230mil), which is 54.8% up from the previous year. The total for … Read More
Growing Japanese Electro-communication Market
According to the 2005 4th quarter Electro-Communication Study done by Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the Electro-communication market is growing rapidly in Japan. The results show there are 14,310,000 DSL contractors, 3,978,500 FTTH contractors, and 10,022,000 IP phone numbers. … Read More
Japanese business men/women obtain business info from Internet
According to Japan.Internet.com and JR Tokai Express Search’s research, 87% of Japanese business men and women between 20 and 59 frequently visits portal sites such as Yahoo! Japan to obtain business related information. 61% answered that they visit online News … Read More
BB Portal for digital TV in Japan
5 top home appliance manufactures* has organized “DTV Portal Inquiry Working Group”. “It is important to provide the services that are easy to understand and easy to use, as digital TV and Internet become part of people’s lives in Japan. … Read More
Ask Jeeves Japan's new services
On February 1st, Ask Jeeves Japan launched beta version of the local area information search services “Jimo Navi” from Ask.jp . Ask.jp has also launched mobile version of the local area information search service “Ask M Town” on January 24th, … Read More
Japanese portal founder jailed
Takafumi Horie, founder of Liverdoor – a major Japanese portal – has been jailed along with other members of the executive board following allegations of breaches in the country’s Securities Exchange Law. The beleaguered company has dropped more than 60% … Read More
Broadband for everyone in Japan by 2010
At the 6th Fiber Optics EXPO in Tokyo, Japan, Mr. Tamada of Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications gave a speech about “Next generation broadband plan 2010”. He said, “The next generation broadband plan 2010 aims to grow Japan as … Read More
MSN Japan to offer a search tool bar for enterprises
MSN Japan began to offer MSN search tool bar for enterprises with the Windows desk top search tool for free. This desk top search searches more than 200 types of files in e-mails, documents, image files, music files, video files, … Read More
Microsoft's new strategic partnership in Japan
On December 27, Microsoft, Japan Telecom and Softbank BB announced the development of “Messenger Joint Communication Services” with their strategic partnership. This service ensures the security by combining the network infrastructure and the services such as VoIP, E-mail, internet access, … Read More
