Japan Market Update - September 2005 Edition

Hi ,

Last month, news in Japan was both positive and exciting. On September 11, Prime Minister Koizumi's gamble to hold a lower house election to secure more support for his LDP party and his planned reform movements paid off. The party's big win and his re-election as Prime Minister for one more year boosted the country's consumer confidence and economic outlook.

The September 30 issue of USA Today suggested that investors take another look at Japan. Signs of a strengthening economy include the Nikkei, which has been hot--up over 18 percent this year--a nice surge from its former state of doldrums that started 16 years ago. In addition, Tokyo property prices rose for the first time in 15 years. And, Tokyo will have the world's largest bank when Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group takes over UFJ Holdings on October 1. Its stock is already up 28 percent.

The successful Aichi World Expo, which ended on September 23, spurred domestic travel in Japan while decreasing overseas travel. On the final days of the expo, crowds were let in early and daily counts surpassed 41,000. Overall, 22 million people attended the expo. The end of the expo, combined with increasing consumer optimism and the strengthening economy, should result in positive growth in overseas travel from Japan.

On a sadder note, our hearts go out to those affected by the bombings in Bali. We will be monitoring the situation to see how it impacts the travel and tourism industry. Any shifts in tourism to destinations from Bali to Hawaii, Guam, Micronesia, Australia, and the U.S. Mainland will be taken into consideration when making short term marketing plans.

For the year 2006, however, we believe the Japanese travel market provides the greatest opportunity for business expansion. PacRim's media and marketing programs target specific consumer niches--particularly those marketing channels that influence Japanese independent-type customers to Hawaii, Guam, Saipan, and the Continental U.S. We look forward to working with you to plan integrated marketing programs with greater reach into this market. Our advertising, public relations, and e-marketing services are all designed to work together to help you meet that goal.

I look forward to personally working with you to finalize your 2006 marketing plans.

*Japan Market News
-----Travel: Hawaii's image is more "beach" than "culture"
-----Travel: Survey results reflect Japanese visitors' profile
-----Business: Expo ends, exceeds attendance goal
-----Business: Japan outsources customer service to Dalian
-----Business: Softbank and Dentsu eye Web TV
-----Technology: Apple unleashes palm-sized iPod "Nano"
-----Technology: "Anytime, anywhere" podcasts a hit in Japan
-----Politics: Koizumi wins, Horie loses
-----Beauty: Pore-purging facials a hit
-----Society: Why Japanese women don't want more kids -- Part two in a series
*Culture Corner
*Media of the Month
*Upcoming Magazine Deadlines
*Important Dates

TRAVEL: HAWAII'S IMAGE IS MORE "BEACH" THAN "CULTURE"

Poll shows travel agents give Hawaii top rating as beach destination, but half that for culture and history
Hawaii's culture and history are being eclipsed by its beautiful beaches, according to a recent Internet survey of 1,300 travel industry subscribers to online magazine Travel Journal International. A majority -- more than 60 percent -- gave Hawaii a 1 rating for its image as a beach resort, based on a 1-to-10 scale with 1 being the strongest. By contrast, more than 30 percent of those surveyed gave a 4 or 5 rating for its image as a destination offering culture. Awareness of Hawaii's history sat even lower on the scale, with 30 percent of respondents rating it 9, or very weak. However, Hawaii's image as a nature destination is catching on, with at least 20 percent of travel industry professionals giving it a "strong" 3 rating. At a recent Japan Travel seminar in Hawaii, industry insiders also supported Hawaii's image as a destination that promoted healing. A majority also agreed "Hawaiian nature" can attract more Japanese visitors to Hawaii, with 35 percent saying it would be effective, and 28 percent saying "very effective."
(Source: Travel Journal International 9/14/05)
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TRAVEL: SURVEY RESULTS REFLECT JAPANESE VISITORS' PROFILE

Guam visitors rely on guidebooks... and more interesting findings
A survey of about 400 departing Japanese visitors at Guam's International Airport revealed some key characteristics of today's travelers: - Average age is 30.6 years old
- More visitors are traveling with friends (46 percent) than with family (24 percent) or spouse (18 percent)
- Repeat visitors totaled 33 percent; the average repeat visitor has been to Guam 2.4 times
- Most visitors stay 3-4 nights (86 percent)
- Most visitors are on free-time package tours (72 percent)
- Men over 50 spent the most (average of $2,114.67); women under 20 spent the least (average $767.78)
- On a 7-point scale, cleanliness of beaches and parks, and ease of getting around ranked higher (5.4 points and 5.3 points respectively) than satisfaction with price (4.2)
- DFS Galleria grossed the most visitors (97 prercent); The Plaza (57 percent); Tumon Sands Plaza (37 percent); Macy's (27 percent)
- Important informational sources are travel guidebooks (73 percent), brochures (59 percent), Internet (51 percent), and magazines (21 percent)

(Source: Guam Visitors Bureau)
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BUSINESS: EXPO ENDS, EXCEEDS ATTENDANCE GOAL

Aichi's expo finishes six-month run on high note
The 2005 World Expo in Aichi officially closed on September 25th, after 185 days of serving as a testing ground for innovative technologies, largely advocating environmental and ecological awareness. Despite a dismal opening week marred by bad weather and bad press -- expo officials banned visitors from bringing in outside food, and hackers, scalpers, and too many hits overloaded an online reservation system -- attendance far exceeded expectations. The final tally rested at 22 million, or 1.5 times the target of 15 million. In fact organizers restricted entrance during a busy three-day weekend in September, when nearly 38,000 people were lined up at the gates prior to opening. On closing day, a crowd of 41,300 prompted expo officials to open the gates 50 minutes earlier than scheduled. Long lines formed at popular pavilions, where the wait time at some were reportedly eight hours long. Media and visitors publicly criticized the expo for being overcrowded, but according to the association governing the expo, nearly 40 percent of attendees were repeat visitors.
(Sources: The Japan Times 9/26/05; Japan Today 9/18/05, 9/26/05)
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BUSINESS: JAPAN OUTSOURCES CUSTOMER SERVICE TO DALIAN

China's city of Dalian is becoming a call center hub for major Japanese corporations
The U.S. has Bangalore, India. Japan now has Dalian, China. Just three hours away by air, the picturesque port city of Dalian is quickly growing into an offshore haven for Japanese companies looking to cut personnel costs. Media giant Livedoor Communications Corp. is one of a few IT-related companies that have moved their call center customers from Japanese cities to Dalian, where the labor cost is a fraction of that in Japan. Overall, Livedoor says the move will help them reduce costs by about 40 percent. Japanese corporations also have the advantage of hiring from a labor pool that actually speaks their language; due in large part to Japan's occupation of Dalian during the early 20th century, many of its residents still learn Japanese in school. But because cultural barriers and misused honorific terms might offend callers, some companies such as Livedoor have opted to hire young, Japanese interns at roughly the same wage as Chinese operators -- 20 yuan, or 160 yen (approx. $1.50) per hour, which is considered adequate to live comfortably in Dalian. Interns have called the opportunity a win-win situation, as they are given an opportunity to live abroad, and have their relocation expenses paid. Hewlett-Packard Co. employs both native and non-native speakers at its Dalian call center, and plans to expand its services for the entire Northeast Asia region after hiring and training native Koreans residing in China.
(Source: Reuters Japan 9/29/05)
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BUSINESS: SOFTBANK AND DENTSU EYE WEB TV

Television service via the Internet may be in the not-so-far future
Forget video clips. Japanese viewers may soon be able to watch their favorite TV shows on their computer, as Internet communications conglomerate Softbank Corp. and Japan's biggest advertising agency Dentsu Corp., are spearheading efforts to make over 1,000 programs available over the Internet. Softbank and Dentsu are planning a joint venture that will launch a Web site accessible by high-speed fiber optic networks, and will offer free programming the traditional TV way -- funded by commercials. All five of Japan's private TV networks are apparently in discussion with Softbank. One network, TV Tokyo, may begin airing some of its business news as part of a six-month trial as early as October. Sources also said Softbank was in discussions with U.S. cable company, Comcast Corp., to provide additional programs. Dentsu has often alluded to the lucrative nature of Internet advertising, and forecast Internet-related businesses would post annual sales growth of about 30 percent over the next few years. Furthermore, the joint venture is seen as a starting trend for telecoms, Internet, and broadcast companies to work together in delivering new media and advertising.
(Source: Reuters Japan 9/16/05)
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TECHNOLOGY: APPLE UNLEASHES PALM-SIZED IPOD "NANO"

Successor to the iPod Mini positioned to dominate market before holiday rush
Practically the size of your business card, Apple's newest MP3 player, the iPod Nano, is expected to blow away the competition during the upcoming holiday season. The Nano was released in early September, alongside the equally revolutionary ROKR cellular phone that "rings and sings," produced jointly with Motorola, and carried exclusively by Cingular Wireless in the U.S. A little less robust than its predecessor, the Nano comes in smaller storage sizes -- 2 and 4 GB -- with capacities for 500 and 1,000 songs respectively. It debuted in Japan a day after the U.S. release, and is retailing for roughly the same price as in the U.S.: 21,800 yen (approx. $198) for the 2 GB and 27,800 ($252) yen for the 4 GB. Rival company Sony released five new digital players on the same day, ranging from a compact version similar to the iPod Shuffle, to a 20 GB behemoth capable of storing 5,000 songs and running for 50 hours (the Nano can play up to 14 hours). Sony ups Apple with "intelligent shuffle" modes that automatically sort users' favorite music selections, but loses the price war by almost $100; the mid-range NW-A608 is scheduled to sell for 32,000 yen ($285) this November.
(Sources: Nikkei.net 9/8/05; Sony Press Release 9/8/05; nikkeibp.jp 9/22/05)
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TECHNOLOGY: "ANYTIME, ANYWHERE" PODCASTS A HIT IN JAPAN

Listener numbers exceed expectations for major Japanese ISP
Considered the next big hit of the Internet era since the blog boom swept Japan two years ago, podcasts are reaching new heights in recent months. One of Japan's largest ISPs, Nifty Corp., said listener numbers have far exceeded their expectations since the launch of their first podcast portal, Podcasting Juice, in July. Nifty says podcasting took off almost simultaneously with the introduction of the iPod and iTunes in Japan. The portal currently offers 13 network radio programs, and drew an estimated 200,000 users between July and mid-August. Among Nifty's most popular podcasts are a language tutorial called "Better English with Catherine," syndicated from a popular radio show, and a program featuring "rakugo," a form of Japanese stand-up comedy. Aside from network radio programs, private blog podcasts are also catching on. A recent survey of 300 bloggers by Jupitermedia Corp. and Info Plant Co. showed that 46 percent are interested in listening to podcasts by other bloggers, citing the convenience of listening to blog entries rather than reading them online.
(Sources: IT Media News 08/22/05; japan.internet.com 6/3/05; www.podcastjuice.co.jp)
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POLITICS: KOIZUMI WINS, HORIE LOSES

Postal reform bill to move forward after landslide victory in snap election
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi vowed to re-launch his postal reform effort immediately, following the victory of his Liberal Democratic Party on September 11. Political backers and public supporters cheered the purge of old-guard resistance from Koizumi's party, although most economists and political analysts agreed that Koizumi has a tough year ahead if he wants to fulfill his promise before his tenure ends next September. Aside from the enormous logistical task of privatizing Japan's network of 20,000 postal offices, Koizumi must also tackle the nation's deficit, the social security crisis surrounding the aging population, and the challenge to cut civil servant salaries by at least 20 percent. But optimism over Japan's pending fiscal reform sent stocks and the yen surging in September, and will likely remain in a "euphoric state" for weeks to come. Meanwhile Livedoor CEO Takafumi Horie lost to former LDP heavyweight Shizuka Kamei at the September election. The 32-year-old newsmaker was considered one of Koizumi's hand-picked political "assassins" to run against LDP rebels who voted against the postal reform bill.
(Sources: The Japan Times 9/13/05; Associated Press 9/12/05)
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BEAUTY: PORE-PURGING FACIALS A HIT

Mini day spa at Tokyo department store helps customers put their best face forward
Blackheads be gone. So goes the mantra at spa Vacance (actually called a "face salon"), which opened its first Kanto-area store September 1 at the Printemps department store in the fashionable Ginza district. Opening day kicked off well, booked solid from 10:30 a.m. until 8 p.m. There's only one facial on the menu -- a 20-minute "Face Deep Cleansing" that begins with the spa's prided makeup-stripping technique. It's followed with more cleansing, using "special water," after which an ultrasonic device is smoothed over the skin to further draw out debris from the pores. The face then rests under a sheet saturated with hyaluronic acid -- a component of connective tissue often dubbed by the media "the fountain of youth" -- to refine the pores. Customers can ask for a boost of vitamin C for an extra 1,890 yen (approx. $17). The spa can only accommodate two customers at a time, and looks to be fully booked for a while. But with quick turnaround and equipped with a powder room for post-treatment makeup application, spa Vacance hopes to attract women (and men) on-the-go.
(Source: Tokyo Shimbun Shopper 9/1/05)
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SOCIETY: WHY JAPANESE WOMEN DON'T WANT MORE KIDS -- PART TWO IN A SERIES

In March 2005, Japan's Ministry of Labor reported an upward trend of women in their early- to mid-30s employed in full-time work (61.4 percent). But compared to those in the 25-29 (74 percent) and 45-49 (73 percent age groups), the M-shaped curve shows a definite dip in 30-something women in the workforce. The obvious explanation is that women of childbearing age retreat from their careers after having children. The not-so-obvious is that women are increasingly torn between starting a family and keeping their careers. Only a lucky minority are able to have both. So while more women choose career over children, those who don't are left with the question, am I giving up my career goals for good?
Why are women forced to choose? The reasons vary, from financial necessity to personal gratification, according to female voices at popular Web site allabout.co.jp -- "once I quit, I don't know if I'll be able to resume the work that I currently enjoy; I'm afraid of being taken from the "frontlines" after my maternity leave; I can't afford to "not work;" I can't carry on the same pace of work and rear children at the same time, but I don't want to fall behind my peers; I'm afraid being a stay-at-home mom will remove me from society; I can't inconvenience my boss and colleagues by having to leave early, or having to take time off for family emergencies." Case in point: Kayo, a mother of two, says juggling childrearing and a career was at first a bitter lesson in compromising. A successful sales manager at a large firm until going on maternity leave with her first child, she was shocked to discover she'd been demoted to "accounting assistant" when she returned three months later. But after the fog cleared and "the shock subsided," she realized she would have been physically unable to tackle the late hours and frequent traveling involved with her previous position. Still, frustrated that her employer dumped her into a job for which she was overqualified, she quit and found herself contract work that allowed more flexible hours. She considers herself lucky to have acquired enough work experience to qualify as a contractor, not to mention the support of family who help her raise two children. Today, she says she feels satisfied being a part-time mom and a part-time career woman, and that the time spent away from her kids helps her be a better parent. But indeed she is one of the lucky ones, as most women "have no choice but to choose."

So what's at stake by choosing to have children? To the disadvantage of most women, it's giving up their career goals, at least in part, if not entirely. The happiest medium, it seems, is to be able to strike a balance between a rewarding career and raising children by help of other family members or, if one can pay for it, hired help. Like in the case of Kayo, some women choose to pave their own way by doing similar work in a different setting, even if it means giving up the security of company benefits and a steady salary.
(Source: allabout.co.jp 8/05)
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MIZUHIKI

Mizuhiki, a ribbon-like paper cord used when exchanging gifts in Japan, plays a very important role in Japanese culture. It is used to tie gifts for congratulations, condolences, and weddings. Most traditional Japanese money envelopes (Noshi) are made with mizuhiki decorations. Mizuhikialso is used in arts and crafts when making art forms that convey meaning such as long life. These include the plum, bamboo, pine, cranes and turtles.

Mizuhiki is made from washi (classical Japanese paper) and cut into long thin strips which have been twisted into strings, then covered with glue made of seaweed and white clay for stiffness. It is from this process that mizuhiki gets its name: Mizu means water and hiki means to apply. After the cord is formed, it is polished to a shine with a cotton cloth or wrapped with colored silk or thin metallic paper to make hundreds of beautiful color combinations.

The Japanese convey Musubu, the Japanese word meaning "connection" or "tying," with Mizuhiki. Mizuhikialso shows warmth, affection, and togetherness and signifies the connection of the heart between the giver and the receiver.

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If you are interested in reaching the sophisticated traveler, Aloha Express' Hawaii Gokutabi (Freestyle Travel) can help you do that. A one-of-a-kind publication designed to make travel decisions easier, Gokutabi provides readers with detailed information and photos about all aspects of travel, including hotel rooms and suites, room views, airline VIP rooms, shopping, dining, and activities.

Don't let this important opportunity pass you by. If you are interested in finding out more about advertising in this publication please contact Lynelle Lingaton at llingaton@pacrimmarketing.com

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Click here for our Media Request Form or contact us.

Space Deadlines:

NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Guam Guidebook
NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Hawaii Mook
NOW! Aloha Express November: Yearbook
NOW! Nouveau Tumon Sands Winter 2005
NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Hawaii Guidebook II
NOW! Nouveau Hawaii Winter 2005
NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Long Stay Hawaii 2006

Material Deadlines:

NOW Chikyu no Arukikata Guam Guidebook
NOW Chikyu no Arukikata Hawaii Mook
NOW Aloha Express November: Yearbook
NOW Nouveau Tumon Sands Winter 2005
10/14 Chikyu no Arukikata Hawaii Guidebook II
10/14 Nouveau Hawaii Winter 2005
11/4 Chikyu no Arukikata Long Stay Hawaii 2006

It is not too late to call us (808-949-4592 or Toll Free 1-800-338-4502) to find out more about these upcoming media releases as we strive to find the best media available for you.

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Upcoming Holidays in Japan

10/10 Taiiku no Hi -- Sports Day
11/23 Kinrou Kansha no Hi -- Labor Day
12/23 Tennou Tanjoubi -- Emperor's Birthday
12/31 Omisoka -- New Year's Eve
1/1 Ganjitsu -- New Year's Day
1/2 Furikae Kyuujitsu -- New Year's Holiday Observed
1/2-1/10 New Year's Holidays (many businesses closed)
1/9 Seijin no Hi -- Coming of Age Day

Click here to see all Japanese holidays for 2006.
Click here to see all US holidays for 2006.

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