Japan Media Review Update: March 2, 2005

JMR Staff (Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California)

Review
The following reviews are posted at: http://www.japanmediareview.com/japan/digest/digest.php

02.22.05
Community Security System Will Track Children Electronically
From The Yomiuri Shimbun via Asia News Network: Integrated circuit tags, normally used to track food products in Japan, will now be tested in protecting children from violent crimes. Tokyo-based NTT Data Corp. announced they are conducting a trial of the devices on 300 schoolchildren in the Aoba Ward, Yokohama between April and July. The new safety system's design enables children to contact their parents, security companies and local residents through cell phone e-mails sent by the IC tag at the push of a button. When a child signals distress, a radio signal will notify a nearby volunteer with an e-mail containing information such as the student's name and physical description. The devices, 6 centimeters long, 3 centimeters wide and 1 centimeter thick, emit radio waves that will be picked up by the 30 receivers set up for the trial. The handheld devices have a 15-meter range. Parents will also be able to freely track children located within the network of receivers on the Internet.
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Erica Ogg

02.22.05
Cell Phone Will Adopt Popular Smart Card For Train Fares
From Associated Press via CNN: NTT DoCoMo, Sony Corp. and East Japan Railway announced that cell phone users will be able to pay for train tickets with their handsets instead of the popular Suica smart cards starting January 2006. The Suica electronic system, used by about 10 million Japanese to buy train fares without using coins, contains Sony's IC chip technology, known as FeliCa. DoCoMo has already sold more than 2 million FeliCa handsets that can be used to make payments in some stores. But the well-accepted Suica service introduced three years ago will not debut on the handsets yet as there have been compatibility problems with the phones. The three companies will experiment with the new service in March with FeliCa Networks Inc., hoping to gain 1 million users next year. In the future the Suica-equipped cell phones can be used for online shopping and ticket reservations in addition to payments at restaurants and convenience stores. The combination of Suica and cell phones is expected to enhance IC chip usage in Japan, where more people use cell phones than anywhere in the world for Internet-related features, such as e-mail, news and restaurant guides.
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Keiko Mori

02.21.05
Community FM Radio Broadcasts GSDF's Voice From Iraq
From The Asahi Shimbun: Yoshioki Jin, a rice dealer in Sapporo, Hokkaido, has attracted listeners to his radio program that airs a 10-minute conversation with members of the Ground Self-Defense Force dispatched to Iraq. The program, started last June, broadcasts through Radio Karos Sapporo, a community FM-radio station. The interest in the show is high, particularly in Sapporo where 350 locals were sent to the Iraqi city of Samawah out of a total of 460 GSDF members in the country as of early summer 2004. Jin, who joined the Defense Academy in his youth and believes GSDF activities should be limited to reconstruction aid, was determined to "report on the real voices" from Iraq and "put a face" to the anonymous 350 people dispatched to Iraq last spring. An example of the weekly conversations includes one with a GSDF member speaking of a sense of accomplishment after the national assembly election in Iraq in January. Even after members of the Hokkaido unit came back last September, Jin's radio program maintained its popularity, and 24 other FM stations in Hokkaido and Tohoku decided to broadcast it. "There are definitely more people out there who are determined to find out things for themselves and give serious thought to the Iraq issue," Jin said.
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Keiko Mori

02.18.05
Internet and TV Ads Show Strong Growth in 2004
From The Japan Times: According to Dentsu Inc., advertising spending in Japan increased in 2004, particularly in TV and Internet advertising, the first growth in four years. Total ad expenditures increased 3 percent from the previous year to 5.86 trillion yen ($55.6 billion), 62.8 percent of which consisted of media advertising. Dentsu associated the rise in TV and Internet advertising to a recovery from the recession, bringing greater demand for advertisements. TV ad spending showed a 4.9 percent increase, while newspaper advertising added 0.6 percent for the first increase in four years. Web advertising enjoyed a 53.3 percent growth due to the popularity of broadband services among Internet users. The Internet became the fourth-largest medium for advertisements after TV, newspapers and magazines, surpassing radio.
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Keiko Mori