Japan Computer Industry Scan articles from May 2004

Japan Computer Industry Scan archives from May 2004

16,000 users of NTT Com's Internet hookup, IP phone hit by paralysis.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... TOKYO, April 27 Kyodo NTT Communications Corp. said Monday a malfunction at its business ally's Internet facilities prevented 16,000 subscribers from using its ''OCN'' Internet and Internet-based IP phone services. The paralysis of...

Nikka Whisky to offer 70,000 yen anniv. whiskey.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... TOKYO, April 27 Kyodo Asahi Breweries Ltd. and its subsidiary Nikka Whisky Distilling Co. said Tuesday they will sell 500 bottles of whiskey for 70,000 yen each Sept. 15 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of Nikka Whisky....

Softbank to enter optical-fiber telecom services in fall.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... TOKYO, April 27 Kyodo Softbank Corp. will launch full-fledged optical-fiber telecommunications services for households across Japan possibly in the fall, company sources said Tuesday. Yahoo! BB, a subsidiary of Softbank, will provide...

NEC's group net balance returns to black in FY 2003.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... TOKYO, April 28 Kyodo NEC Corp. said Wednesday its group net balance swung into the black in the business year to March 31 due partly to buoyant sales of cellphones and optical disk drives, and handsome proceeds from the initial public...

Ministry reprimands ACCA Networks over data leakage.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... TOKYO, April 28 Kyodo The telecom ministry reprimanded Wednesday high-speed Internet access provider ACCA Networks Co. over a leakage of customer information, ministry officials said. The Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs,...

NTT East, West to start fiber optic-based IP phone service in Aug.(Brief Article)
May 3, 2004... TOKYO, April 28 Kyodo Fixed-line telecom carriers NTT East Corp. and NTT West Corp. said Wednesday they will start offering optical fiber line-based Internet protocol (IP) telephony service for individual customers in August. The...

New computer virus Sasser spreads worldwide.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... LONDON, May 3 Kyodo The new computer virus designed to attack defects in Microsoft operating system has affected several hundred thousand personal computers worldwide, Reuters reported Monday. Citing an expert at the Helsinki-based...

Sony launches online music distribution service in U.S.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... NEW YORK, May 4 Kyodo Sony Corp. on Tuesday launched an Internet-based paid music distribution service in the United States, allowing computer users to download music for 99 cents a piece and $9.90 for an album. Sony, which initially...

LEAD: 'Sasser' computer worm infections spreading in Japan.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... TOKYO, May 6 Kyodo (EDS: RECASTING WITH MORE INFO) The Japanese government on Thursday issued a renewed alert to computer users concerning the ''Sasser'' worm and its variants, which began circulating on the Internet in early May and...

Data on Mitsubishi Materials' silver accessories customers leaked.
May 10, 2004... TOKYO, May 6 Kyodo Mitsubishi Materials Corp. said Thursday that data on 1,100 customers of silver material from which handmade silver accessories are fashioned have been leaked. The data include the names, addresses, phone numbers,...

Softbank BB to hire 3,000 graduates next spring.(Brief Article)
May 10, 2004... TOKYO, May 7 Kyodo Internet service provider Softbank BB Corp. said Friday it plans to hire about 3,000 new graduates next spring in a bid to strengthen its marketing in its broadband business. The operator of the Yahoo BB! Internet...

Softbank posts steeper group net loss in FY 2003.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 10 Kyodo Internet business investor Softbank Corp. said Monday it fell deeper into the red in fiscal 2003 on its group net balance due to heavy costs to attract more customers to its broadband services. The group posted a...

NTT DoCoMo unveils world's smallest Internet-capable mobile phone.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 11 Kyodo NTT DoCoMo Inc. on Tuesday took the wraps off the world's smallest mobile phone capable of displaying Internet pages on its screen. The 1.9 centimeter-thick Premini handset measures 9 cm in length and 3.9 cm in...

More data on Mitsubishi Materials customers found leaked.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 11 Kyodo Mitsubishi Materials Corp. said Tuesday there may be 200 cases of personal data leakage involving 150 customers of card-shaped pure gold, in addition to the already found 1,100 cases of leakage of data on its...

Kuraray to set up artificial leather JV in China.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 12 Kyodo Artificial leather maker Kuraray Co. said Wednesday it will establish a joint venture with Zhejiang Hexin Industry Co., China's largest artificial leather maker, to produce micro fiber leather in China beginning in...

KDDI develops handset for viewing digital TV, receiving linked data.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 12 Kyodo Telecom carrier KDDI Corp. said Wednesday it has developed Japan's first prototype of a mobile phone enabling users to view terrestrial digital television programs and obtain various data linked to the programs, such...

Sony, Nintendo take wraps off new handheld multimedia game gadgets.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 12 Kyodo Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. and Nintendo Co. on Wednesday respectively took the wraps off new handheld video game gadgets with color liquid crystal displays that offer wireless connectivity for multiplayer gaming....

Toray to reorganize domestic film business, set up new company.(Brief Article)
May 17, 2004... TOKYO, May 13 Kyodo Toray Industries Inc., Japan's largest synthetic fiber maker, said Thursday it will integrate its film manufacturing operations in the domestic market through a merger of two subsidiaries in July. Toray intends to...

LEAD: AOL to withdraw from Net hookup business in Japan.(Brief Article)
May 24, 2004... TOKYO, May 17 Kyodo (EDS: RECASTING THROUGHOUT) America Online Inc. of the United States will effectively withdraw from Internet connection service in Japan as its wholly owned Japanese subsidiary decided to turn over its business to...

TEPCO, Toshiba to begin fiber-optic video distribution.(Brief Article)
May 24, 2004... TOKYO, May 18 Kyodo Tokyo Electric Power Co. and Toshiba Corp. plan to launch a fiber-optic video distribution service in 2005, a Japanese business daily reported Tuesday. The Nihon Keizai Shimbun said the service will offer about...

Seiko Epson develops world's largest OLED color display.(Brief Article)
May 24, 2004... TOKYO, May 18 Kyodo Seiko Epson Corp. said Tuesday it has developed the world's largest color display using an organic light-emitting diode, or OLED, the leading candidate for use in next-generation thin, lightweight displays. The...

Counselors to monitor dating websites to protect minors.(Brief Article)
May 24, 2004... TOKYO, May 20 Kyodo The National Association of Juvenile Guidance Counselors said Thursday it will monitor the contents of online dating service to prevent minors from falling victim to crimes, particularly juvenile prostitution. ...

Namco posts 83% net profit rise in FY 2003.(Brief Article)
May 24, 2004... TOKYO, May 20 Kyodo Video game software and hardware maker Namco Ltd. said Thursday its group net profit jumped 83.3 percent to 7.55 billion yen in the business year ended March 31 mainly on strong sales of arcade game equipment and...