Tokyo Trains Try Out NFC Advertising
A while ago we wrote about a concept game design that conceived to integrate games into the straps that passengers grip while standing on trains. And while that sort of thing might be a while off, a company in Tokyo is currently testing out a way to advertise with these straps using NFC.Shunkosha currently has FeliCa NFC-enabled straps installed on the Ginza and Marunouchi train lines for a trial period which started yesterday, and will extend to June 3rd. Users simply need to touch their phone and obtain ...
Survey Says Japan Seen as Most Creative Country, By Everyone Except Japan [Infographic]
Adobe has released an interesting survey which takes a look at creativity across the globe. Its State of Create global benchmark study surveyed people in the US, the UK, Germany, France, and Japan and came up with a number of interesting findings on how people in some of the world’s largest economies view creativity. Among the most remarkable findings in this report is how the respondents around the world view creativity in Japan, and how this contrasts with how respondents in Japan see themselves.Among the total respondents, Japan ...
Two New Virtual Shops Open in Japan Using Panoplaza
Some of you may recall back at our Startup Asia event event in February, we had a glimpse at a fascinating virtual store service called Panoplaza. It specialized in providing panoramic views of interior shopping spaces, aspiring to make virtual representations of actual shops that you can then browse online.Now the folks at Kadinche Tokyo , the provider of Panoplaza, tell us that they have created two new virtual stores in collaboration with local companies. The first is a something called a ‘Virtual Switchroom’ for Tokyu Department Store’s shopping ...
GREE Invests in Wizcorp, Aims to Leverage its HTML5 Expertise
Earlier this week Tokyo-based game developer Wizcorp announced on its website that it had become a strategic partner of Japanese social gaming giant GREE (TYO:3632) . By investing in Wizcorp, GREE is aiming to capitalize on the startup’s expertise in HTML5 game development, particularly its ‘Mithril’ game development engine.For those of you who have not heard of Wizcorp before, you’re not alone. I initially confused it with game and toy maker WiZ Co., who is also based in Japan. So I got in touch with Wizcorp to find out ...
Mobile Monday Tokyo: Sakura Under the Stars
Cherry blossom season is about to start, and the folks at Mobile Monday Tokyo aren’t wasting any time taking to the great outdoors. Today I spoke with the group’s organizer Lars Cosh-Ishii, who tells me that the upcoming hanami event will be on the evening of Thursday, April 5th at Kinuta Park, a famous cherry blossom viewing spot.The event will also welcome special guests from Rovio, I’m told, who were in the hanami spirit a few weeks in advance with their cherry blossom festival update for Angry Birds ...
Eight: A Business Card Contact Management Platform from Japan
Exchanging cards is a big part of business etiquette, especially in Japan. A Tokyo-based venture company called Sansan is known for providing a combined solution of business card scanning, data entry, and a web-based contact management system. It's intended for offices with employees suffering from managing an enormous number of cards from potential clients.In order to use the service, users are required to rent a Windows mobile device as a scanner. When an employee comes back to his/her office, they set the cards collected on the device to have them scanned. Scanned images ...
Facebook Mobile Hack Roadshow Coming To Singapore, Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo
There are quite a lot of hackathons/hacking sessions in Asia these days, particularly those organized or supported by big companies. And that’s a great thing.The latest hack roadshow in Asia will be held independently by Facebook. The four cities to have these sessions are Singapore, Hong Kong, Seoul, and Tokyo.Facebook’s hack roadshow will focus specifically on mobile, including topics like web app development, native app development, responsive design (this one looks insightful), and an introduction to the Facebook mobile platform.There will also be a hands-on hacking session near ...
Foursquare Introduces Sakura Badge To Tokyo Users
Is Foursquare trying to become the mayor of Asia? It kinda looks like it. After introducing a special Lion City badge for Singapore users, Foursquare launched the Sakura Badge this past Friday evening for its Tokyo users.All you have to do is to check-in at five of the 64 Tokyo spots on Foursquare that are listed for this Sakura badge. These are popular locations in the city including Shibuya, Harajuku, and Shinjuku.Foursquare has made some amazing progress in Tokyo. According to its data last year, Shibuya and Shinjuku were ranked second and third ...
Get a Fresh Look on Japan with Google’s Improved Street View
Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) today rolled out a number of improvements to its Street View service, adding its largest number of ‘partner program collections’ ever. Essentially that means sites on private property, not just on public streets. The additions extend across 22 countries.In Japan specifically, 98 locations have been added, including a number of World Heritage sites. There are also many very cool 360-degree panoramas such as Yokohama Akarenga Soko and Yokohama Stadium (where you can check out the view from the home plate, see right).You can browse these over on ...
Tokyo-based AQ Wants to Help Start-ups Design Better
Today Tokyo-based design house AQ announced the launch of a new user-experience design program to cater to start-ups who need help in that area. The program is called AQ Lift, and in order to find out a little more about it I sent a few questions to AQ co-founder Chris Palmieri.How did the idea for AQ Lift come about?AQ Lift emerged from a number of observations and needs from within AQ and within the web startup community.In Tokyo, we've noticed the beginnings of a new wave of web businesses ...
Japan’s Samurai Incubate To Establish ‘Startup Island’ in Tokyo
Tokyo-based tech start-up incubator Samurai Incubate announced it would launch an incubation space in the Tokyo's waterfront town of Tennozu on November 1st. The space will be called Samurai Startup Island, which you must admit is a pretty cool name! The space will be one of the country's largest facilities of its kind, where more than 15 start-ups, VC firms, a certified tax accountant, an administrative scrivener, and a California-registered attorney will reside.The office is closely located to 24/7 restaurants and a public bath with hot spring, which makes things ...
Well-known Japanese Venture Capitalist Finally Launches His Own Fund
Hiroyuki Watanabe, a well-known venture capitalist in the Japanese start-up community, recently launched his own fund for investing in tech start-ups. It's called B Dash Ventures and is reportedly expected to be worth 2 billion yen by next year.Mr. Watanabe started his career at an investment arm of Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Capital in 2007, and he was appointed the investment division manager for a tech-oriented investment company Ngi Group last year. He frequently lectures and presents at many start-up events and conferences.NTT Investment Partners, the investment arm of the country's largest telco, announced it would ...
Konami to Bring Powerful Pro Baseball to GREE and Mobage
Gaming news website AndriaSang.com is reporting that Konami (NYSE:KNM) will take its Powerful Pro Baseball to social game platforms GREE and Mobage this summer, for both iOS and Android. Players will be able to team up with other players ...
GREE Talks Global Expansion at E3
While our content was dominated by our Startup Asia Jakarta 2012 event last week, E3 was going on in Los Angeles, and Japan’s GREE (TYO:3632) was there showing off its global gaming platform. The folks over at Venture Beat have ...
Beijing Police Arrest iPhone-Thieving Subway Gangs
iPhone users in Beijing can breathe a little easier after the announcement that Beijing police have arrested 332 thieves stealing iPhones on the Beijing subway so far this year, including one gang of 23 people.
NTT Docomo Acquires Additional Stake in Tower Records Japan, Makes it a Subsidiary
NTT Docomo (NYSE:DCM) has announced this afternoon that it will be acquiring additional shares in Tower Records Japan Inc. According to Reuters, the company will increase its stake to 50.3 percent from 42.1, by picking up the additional stake from ...
Map of the World’s Most Dominant Websites: Who Rules Asia?
Here’s a great map visualization from the folks over at WebEmpires.org, showing which websites are dominant in each country around the world. As you can see, Google is winning in most of the English speaking world, and in South America ...
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