Selling Japan through “Cool Japan”

 NHK has a program called “Answer Questions about Cool Japan!” Here are my answers.

Q. The government has started to expend energy in promoting “Cool Japan.” What is the real condition in the business world?

A. The content industry is 13 trillion yen. That represents 1/10^th of the worldwide 160 trillion yen market, and puts us in second place after the U.S. It’s centered on the Manga, anime, and game industries, but the market in Japan is showing a contractive tendency.

 Japan’s percentage of content exports is 5%, which is fairly low when compared to the United States’ 17%. The main export is anime and games, but I feel that there is the potential to export more. However, at only 3% of the GDP, the content industry can not be the center poll of the total economy. It’s important to realize that the reason for supporting the content industry isn’t just to support the content industry. Rather, through the enlargement of the content industry, related industries are aided. Specifically, anime can be the “PR” through which fashion and food are sold.

Q. Why does the government promote the Cool Japan strategy?

A. Japanese industry is changing due to the aging of the population, and the main industries of automobiles and home electronics is having a hard time. It’s important to make a new industry out of Japan’s unique culture and promote it to the world.

 The content policy was introduced 20 years ago, but the current regime is putting unparalleled energy into it. Under the current economic policy, the content industry is meant to be used as a catalyst for the electronics, food, and tourism industries.

Q. What is the current state of Japan’s ability to export her culture to the world?

A. The face of Japan right now is manga, anime, and games. You won’t find a child who doesn’t know about Pikachu, One Piece, and Naruto. These have been exported throughout the world. There is a Japan Expo held in Paris to introduce Japanese culture. Manga and anima are especially popular. In 2000 there were 3000 attendees, but by 2012 it had grown into a 4-day event with 200,000 attendees.

Q. Is Korea used as a model, with the success of K-POP and TV Dramas?

A. The content budget in Korea has multiplied since the Kim Dae-jung administration in 1998. There are three main points. The first is “concentration.” They concentrated on movies and music as the pop culture genres that they would export to the world.

 The next is “cooperation.” The contents are tied up with the electronics and automotive industries and sold as a set. Finally there is “government.” They have given their full support.

 On the other hand, Japan’s approach has been all-around, without concentrating on certain genres. It has also not been cooperative, but rather vertically segmented. Also, the government hasn’t been as supportive as the Korean government. In 10 year the content budget in Korea doubled, but during the same period it shrank in Japan.

 Seeing the results of Korea’s policy, the government has decided to combine pop culture with the food and fashion industries and to enthusiastically support the export of Japanese culture.