Japan Computer Industry Scan articles from May 2003

Japan Computer Industry Scan archives from May 2003

Yahoo Japan eyeing groupwide content procurement.(Brief Article)
May 6, 2003... TOKYO, April 30 Kyodo Yahoo Japan Corp. is planning to provide content on its Internet portal site in cooperation with Yahoo! Inc. of the United States and other affiliated browsing service providers in more than 20 countries, company...

Japan's broadband contracts more than double in FY 2002.(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
May 6, 2003... TOKYO, April 30 Kyodo Japan's Internet access providers had a combined 9,397,426 broadband subscribers as of the end of March, more than double the 3,861,195 figure of a year ago, the telecom ministry said Wednesday in a preliminary...

Japan, U.S. firms develop new Internet connection software.(Brief Article)
May 6, 2003... TOKYO, May 2 Kyodo Five Japanese and U.S. high-tech firms have developed new Internet connection software compatible with IPv6, the next-generation Internet protocol, a spokesman for one of the five said Friday. The new router...

Software companies warn against computer virus with SARS link.("Coronex")(Brief Article)
May 6, 2003... TOKYO, May 2 Kyodo Anti-virus computer software companies are urging caution over a computer virus that purports to send information related to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) via e-mail. Trend Micro Inc. said the computer...

Sega opts for merger with Sammy, deal appears imminent.(Brief Article)
May 6, 2003... TOKYO, May 3 Kyodo Ailing computer game maker Sega Corp. has opted for a merger with pachinko-type game maker Sammy Corp., giving up an offer of marriage from video game maker Namco Ltd., sources familiar with the situation said Friday....

NTT West's L-mode Internet access service develops trouble.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... OSAKA, May 6 Kyodo NTT West Corp. said Tuesday its L-mode fixed-line Internet access service has malfunctioned due to a glitch in the computer server, affecting some 175,000 lines. Access to the ''Main Menu'' and ''My Menu''...

Cisco Systems to unveil wireless IP phone shortly.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 6 Kyodo Cisco Systems Inc. of the United States will unwrap before this summer an advanced version of its IP mobile phone enabling users to converse with their friends via the Internet for free or at ultra-bargain rates, Cisco's...

Bandai sees record group operating, pretax profits in FY 2002.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 7 Kyodo Japan's largest toy maker Bandai Co. said Wednesday it posted record-high group operating and pretax profits in fiscal 2002 ended March 31 on strong sales in Japan of its character toys for boys and home-use game...

Kyocera to supply fast wireless access system to Australia.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 7 Kyodo Kyocera Corp. and NEC Infrontia Corp. will jointly supply an Australian company with a high-speed wireless Internet access system, sources familiar with the deal said Wednesday. The system is capable of constantly...

Management of Infoseek, Lycos Japan may be integrated.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 8 Kyodo Rakuten Inc. is considering integrating the management of two portal site operators under its umbrella, Lycos Japan Inc. and Infoseek Japan K.K., by the end of this year, Rakuten President Hiroshi Mikitani said...

LEAD: Softbank net loss widens due to big broadband investment.
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 9 Kyodo (EDS: ADDING INFO) Internet investor Softbank Corp. said Friday its group net loss for the business year ended March 31 widened to 99.99 billion yen from 88.76 billion yen the previous year as its heavy up-front...

ANA, Virgin Atlantic tie up in frequent flyer program.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 12 Kyodo All Nippon Airways Co. (ANA) and Britain's Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. said Monday they have agreed to mutually promote their frequent flyer programs. Under the agreement that will take effect June 1, members of...

Yahoo Japan to boost Internet stores, challenges Rakuten.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 13 Kyodo Yahoo Japan Corp., operator of Japan's biggest general information Web site, said Monday that it plans to expand the number of participating stores in its online retail outlet ''Yahoo Shopping'' to aim at the top place...

High-tech start-up launches digital certificate service firm.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2003... TOKYO, May 13 Kyodo High-tech start-up Global Media Online Inc. said Tuesday it has tied up with GeoTrust Inc. of the United States and set up a new company to provide digital certificate services. The new firm, GeoTrust Japan Inc.,...

Sony to join portable game market in late 2004.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2003... NEW YORK, May 13 Kyodo Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. said Tuesday it plans to hit the portable game market in the fourth quarter of 2004 with the development of a portable game console for its popular PlayStation products. ...

Domestic shipments of PC servers down for 1st time in FY 2002.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2003... TOKYO, May 14 Kyodo Domestic shipments of personal computer servers dropped 3.1% to 317,800 units in fiscal 2002 ended March 31 over the previous year, marking the first-ever decline, a research institute said Wednesday. The total...

KDDI to join hands with 53 firms in field of IP phone services.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2003... TOKYO, May 15 Kyodo Telecommunications operator KDDI Corp. said Thursday it will join hands with 53 Internet service providers, telecom operators and other concerns in the field of Internet Protocol (IP) telephone services. KDDI...

Nifty mistakenly collects fees from 5,000 IP phone users.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2003... TOKYO, May 15 Kyodo Major Internet access provider Nifty Corp. has mistakenly charged 5,286 subscribers to its Internet Protocol (IP) telephony service a total of about 5 million yen, company officials said Thursday. Nifty notified...

Sharp to release new mobile handset for downloading e-books.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2003... OSAKA, May 19 Kyodo Sharp Corp. said Monday it will release a new mobile handset in late May that enables users to buy and download electronic books, or e-books, over the Internet. The Osaka-based consumer electronics maker has already...

Namco reports strong earnings on robust game sales.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2003... TOKYO, May 21 Kyodo Video game software and equipment maker Namco Ltd. reported Wednesday hefty earnings growth on the back of restructuring effects and brisk sales of its home-use products. Namco's group net profit for the year...

Nintendo sees 36.8% fall in FY 2002 net group profit.(year ended Mar 31, 2003)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2003... TOKYO, May 22 Kyodo Game console and software maker Nintendo Co. said Thursday its consolidated net profit fell 36.8% to 67.27 billion yen in the business year ended March 31 largely due to lower-than-expected sales of game consoles. ...