JIN-223 -- Golden Week far from Golden for Travel Industry

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J@pan Inc Magazine Presents:
T H E J @ P A N I N C N E W S L E T T E R
Commentary on the Week's Business and Technology News
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Issue No. 223
Friday, April 18, 2003
Tokyo

CONTENTS

++ Viewpoint: Golden Week far from Golden for Travel Industry
++ Noteworthy News
- Sony Withdraws Bid for "Shock and Awe" Patent
- Toyota on Track to Post Record Profit
- NTT to Slash Pay Phones by 92,000

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++ Viewpoint: Golden Week far from Golden for Tourism Industry

First a weak economy, then war, now SARS. The tourism industry is
reeling from all three, and as a result, overseas travel during the
Golden Week holiday will be way down this year, according to media
reports. The Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) released data
that showed package tours down 37 percent year on year in April and
June, and 50 percent in May. Japan Air Systems has asked some of its
flight attendants to take unpaid leave during May to deal with the
downturn, the Nikkei reported.

Package tours to Asia are down a full 65 percent, according to JATA.
The association release a report on the industry in February that was
cautiously optimistic about a rebound because of increased travel from
Japan to other parts of Asia. Here's an excerpt:

"Recovery of travel demand for the US, including Hawaii, is quite
slow. It seems that many of those seeking to avoid danger select Asian
destinations, especially China and Vietnam ... China has become more
convenient for Japanese to visit both in terms of cost and distance,
thanks to there being more airline services available. Various tourist
spots in China are often featured in the Japanese media, and this
appears to have brought on a wave of travel demand for this
neighboring country."

SARS has destroyed that trend in a hurry. There's good reason to
believe this current combination of war and disease will hit Japan's
travel industry far harder than 911 did. Let's hope I'm wrong.

-- Bruce Rutledge

Editor's note: We'd like to congratulate Yoshiaki Nariya, who won a
free ticket to the Economist branding event advertised in this
newsletter.

Sources:
From the Nikkei Net (subscription required)
http://www.nni.nikkei.co.jp/AC/TNKS/Nni20030416D16JFA14.htm

The JATA report from February
http://www.jata-net.or.jp/english/reports/2003/market-trends021012.htm

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++ NOTEWORTHY NEWS
(Long URLs may break across two lines, so copy to your browser.)

** Sony Withdraws Bid for "Shock and Awe" Patent

In Brief: Sony was doing its best to end a PR disaster this week in
the face of global criticism over its move to register as a trademark
the military phrase "shock and awe." The company withdrew its request
at the US Patent Office, called the move "an exercise of regrettable
bad judgment" and laid the blame squarely on its US subsidiary, which
made the trademark request just one day after war broke out in Iraq.

Commentary: Sony's secret bid for the "Shock and Awe" phrase was outed
by the Guardian in the UK, thus starting the PR nightmare. The
video-game industry has been accused of many things, but being
tasteful is not one of them. Still, the cynical move of trying to
trademark the phrase before the dead are even buried sets a new
low for the industry. Note to Sony: The trademark for "Osama, Yo'
Mama" is already taken.

Source:
The Guardian
http://media.guardian.co.uk/marketingandpr/story/0,7494,937916,00.html

Link:
"Microsoft to Sony: This War Ain't Over Yet" from August 2002
http://www.japaninc.net/article.php?articleID=857

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** Toyota on Track to Post Record Profit

In Brief: The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that Toyota Motor is
prepared to report record recurring profit of 1.43 trillion yen for
the past fiscal year. The figure would be the largest ever posted by a
Japanese company. The carmaker declined comment, saying it would
announce figures on May 8.

Commentary: Toyota has set records for profit in the last two years
largely because of success in North America and cost-cutting
worldwide. It also just unveiled a new hybrid system that raises power
levels in both the electric motor and the engine; this should be in
cars by 2006, according to media reports. As long as Toyota stays
ahead of its competitors in the so-called green technologies, it
should be reaping record profit for years to come.

Source:
From Reuters
http://sg.biz.yahoo.com/030417/3/3a50s.html

Link:
"Cars for the M Generation" from our January issue
http://www.japaninc.net/article.php?articleID=986

** NTT to Slash Pay Phones by 92,000

In Brief: In 1985, there were 935,000 pay phones in Japan. By the end
of this fiscal year, there will be 490,000 left, according to the
Yomiuri. NTT East and West will get rid of 92,000 of the phones during
this fiscal year as demand for the once ubiquitous machines dwindles.
The companies lost more than 34 billion yen in the pay phone business
in 2001.

Commentary: Visiting Japan on business? Stop by a convenience store
and pick up a temporary cellphone and save yourself the aggravation of
searching for a pay phone, which is quickly becoming an endangered
species.

Source:
From the Yomiuri Online
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/index-e.htm

Link:
"Booming IP Telephony Challenges NTT's Telecom Empire" from our March
issue
http://www.japaninc.net/article.php?articleID=1035

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STAFF
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