Japan Computer Industry Scan articles from August 2002

Japan Computer Industry Scan archives from August 2002

NEC, KDDI, 2 others set up JV in broadband service contents.(content distribution joint venture)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, July 29 Kyodo Four electronics and telecom firms, including NEC Corp. and KDDI Corp., said Monday they have formed a joint venture to provide new service contents designed for users of broadband high-speed Internet services. ...

Trend Micro issues warning against new computer virus.(Manymize virus)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, July 29 Kyodo Antivirus software company Trend Micro Inc. warned Monday that a new computer virus called Manymize may spread in Japan. The virus, written in English, carries subject indexes reading ''How Are You!!,'' ''My...

Olympus unveils 5-yr plan seeking 60% sales jump.(Olympus Optical Co.)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, July 29 Kyodo (EDS: ADDING COMPANY'S PLAN TO SPEND 20 BIL. YEN FOR ADS IN LAST PARA) Olympus Optical Co., a maker of medical endoscopes and cameras, unveiled a five-year program Monday under which it hopes to boost group...

Sharp to mass-produce blue semiconductor lasers.
August 5, 2002... OSAKA, July 30 Kyodo Sharp Corp. President Katsuhiko Machida said Tuesday his company will start mass-producing blue semiconductor lasers by the end of next year. Machida unveiled the plan at a press conference in the major...

Yahoo Japan plans to hire more than 200 people annually.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, July 31 Kyodo Yahoo Japan Corp., operator of Japan's top Internet search site, said Wednesday it plans to expand its work force and hire 200 or more people a year to cope with the company's aggressive business expansion plan. ...

Users of broadband access service forecast to soar.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, July 31 Kyodo The number of subscribers to broadband Internet access services is expected to increase to 31.35 million at the end of 2006 from 9.09 million at the end of 2002, an Internet-related market research company said...

52.45 million people use Internet in year up to last Oct.(Japan: Internet use)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, July 31 Kyodo About 52.45 million people used the Internet in Japan through computers or mobile phones in the year up to October 2001, according to a government survey released Wednesday. The survey conducted on about 200,000...

Toray acquires fluorofiber business from DuPont.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 1 Kyodo Leading Japanese fiber maker Toray Industries Inc. said Thursday it has purchased the fluoric fiber business from major U.S. chemical firm DuPont Co. Toray has set up Toray Fluorofibers (America) Inc. with a...

Customer information at Osaka Internet cafe leaked.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... OSAKA, Aug. 1 Kyodo (EDS: UPDATING WITH ANNOUNCEMENT BY K-OPTICOM) Internet-related services provider K-Opticom Corp., a unit of Kansai Electric Power Co., said Thursday that data on about 17,000 registered customers at a Net cafe it...

Cabinet Office urges gov't to improve stats on IT sector.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 2 Kyodo A study group at the Cabinet Office has adopted a report urging the government to improve statistical data on information technology (IT) sectors to better deal with the rapidly changing IT world, group members said...

Nifty starts streaming distribution of game software.(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 5 Kyodo Internet access provider Nifty Corp. said Monday it has begun streaming distribution of game software via broadband communications lines. The new service allows users to enjoy computer games without installing...

eAccess to accept orders for 12-megabit ADSL access service.(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 5 Kyodo Telecommunications venture business eAccess Ltd. said Monday it will begin accepting orders Tuesday for its new asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) Internet access service. The service, with a maximum speed...

S. Korea online game Ragnarok to be launched for free in Japan.(by Gravity Corp. and GungHo Online Entertainment Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 6 Kyodo The latest version of the popular South Korean online game Ragnarok will become available in Japan for free from next Monday, Korean and Japanese sponsoring companies said Tuesday. Gravity Corp., the South Korean...

Kodak, Mitsui-Soko tie up in data management services.(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 7 Kyodo Kodak Japan Ltd. and Mitsui-Soko Co. said Wednesday they will ally in data management services for corporate customers. The Japanese unit of U.S. photography company Eastman Kodak Co. and the major warehousing...

Anti-junk mail bodies have servers vulnerable to such mail.(Japan Data Communications Association and the Japan Industrial Association)(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 7 Kyodo Two government-affiliated associations engaging in trying to prevent Internet junk mail were found to have computer servers with defects that permit such mail, government officials and others concerned said Wednesday....

Softbank seeks market stability after Nasdaq decision.
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 8 Kyodo Softbank Corp. said Thursday it will try to ensure stability in the Nasdaq Japan market in the wake of Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.'s decision to write off its investment and loans to Nasdaq Japan Inc. ''We understand...

No. of subscribers to DSL services more than doubles from Jan.(in Japan)(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 9 Kyodo The number of subscribers to digital subscriber line (DSL) high-speed Internet access services reached about 3.61 million at the end of July, more than double January's figure, the telecommunications ministry said...

Subscribers to Yahoo BB's ADSL service at 779,000.(Brief Article)
August 12, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 9 Kyodo Softbank Corp. said Friday the number of subscribers to its Yahoo! BB asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) high-speed Internet access service came to 779,000 at the end of July, up about 119,000 from a month...

Mobile contents provider Faith to take over French firm.
August 12, 2002... OSAKA, Aug. 9 Kyodo Faith Inc., a Kyoto-based mobile phone contents provider, said Friday it will take over Digiplug SA, a French mobile telecommunications research and development company, for 20 million euros. With the purchase of...

Yahoo Japan launches search service for party organizers.
August 19, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 12 Kyodo Yahoo Japan Corp., operator of Japan's top Internet portal Yahoo! Japan, on Monday began offering a new Net search service for party organizers. The free-of-charge service, launched in a tie-up with Nagoya-based...

Softbank says no plans to liquidate Nasdaq Japan.
August 19, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 14 Kyodo Softbank Corp. said Wednesday it has no plans to liquidate Nasdaq Japan Inc., its joint venture with Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. ''Our company will continue negotiations with our partner Nasdaq for stability in the...

2,100 Fujitsu workers to quit under early retirement program.
August 19, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 15 Kyodo About 2,100 blue-collar workers of Fujitsu Ltd. have applied for its early retirement program under a new restructuring plan, company officials said Thursday. Employees at the company's three factories mainly...

SRA buys part of Turbolinux's operation, Japan unit.(Software Research Associates )(Brief Article)
August 26, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 20 Kyodo (EDS: UPDATING) Japanese software developer Software Research Associates Inc. (SRA) said Tuesday it has bought the open-source Linux business of Turbolinux Inc. of the United States as well as its Japanese...

Access sets up 2 units in China, allies with China Unicom.(Brief Article)
August 26, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 20 Kyodo Access Co., a leading supplier of Internet software for mobile phones, said Tuesday it has set up two subsidiaries in China and agreed to form an alliance with China Unicom Ltd., China's second-largest telecom...

Latest versions of 'Galaxy Express 999' to be offered online.(Brief Article)
August 26, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 22 Kyodo (EDS: HOMEPAGES ACCESSIBLE AT http://www.yahoo.co.jp/ FOR YAHOO JAPAN, AND http://www.powerbroad.ne.jp/ FOR TTNET) Toei Animation Co. will distribute via the Internet the latest versions of the popular ''Galaxy...

Rakuten posts record revenues in 1st half.(Brief Article)
August 26, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 22 Kyodo Rakuten Inc., an operator of an Internet shopping mall, said Thursday it chalked up group sales of 4,355 million yen in the January-June first half of the current business year, the largest on a half-year basis. ...

NEC, JCB to provide Web hookup service for small businesses.
August 26, 2002... TOKYO, Aug. 22 Kyodo NEC Corp. said Thursday it and Japan's largest credit-card firm JCB Co. will jointly start providing a new type of Internet hookup service on Sept. 19 for shop owners and other small businesses intent on using the...