Launch of a Major Incubation Plan in Aichi Prefecture

 ■Launch of a Major Incubation Plan in Aichi Prefecture

The “Station Ai Project Promotion Council” was held at the Aichi Prefectural Government.

A massive incubation facility will be created to kick off a community involving industry, academia, and the government to build a startup ecosystem of manufacturing x digital. This started through an initiative by Governor Hideaki Omura.

I am participating from the perspective of the CiP Council.

The objective of the “Station Ai” facility is to deliver innovation by combining manufacturing technologies, which are a strength of Aichi Prefecture, with startups. The long-term goal is to develop a rooted ecosystem by offering incentives that attract more startup companies.

Related parties, including companies, universities, and the government, align to form a package of policies that support the creation and attraction of startups. A particular focus is placed in areas that combine the manufacturing industry, which is a strong presence in Aichi Prefecture for automobiles, and digital elements.

Station Ai will be located in the 7,300 m2 former Aichi Kinro Kaikan site next to Tsurumai Park in Nagoya. It is scheduled to open in 2022.

It will be a multi-story space containing coworking space, offices, event space, seminar space, lodging facilities, cafes, and restaurants. It will be the greatest incubation facility in Japan or rather, one of the best in the world.

With Station Ai serving as the core, various other satellite support hubs in Aichi Prefecture, such as those for medicine, healthcare, content, sports, and food, to facilitate cooperation between hubs. There can also be cooperation with other cities, such as with CiP in Takeshiba, Tokyo.

Its overseas network will be notable. The governor has taken a lead in involving major players from overseas.

MOUs have already been concluded with the National University of Singapore, Tsinghua University, and Institut Mines-Télécom in France. Discussions are also taking place with the University of Texas at Austin, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Zhejiang University, and INSEAD in France.

Governor Omura states, “The winner-take-all system continues to be seen in the world. We would like to join manufacturing and digital to build an ecosystem that attracts startups, as accumulation leads to more accumulation. We will also work with the Station F incubation facility in Paris, which we draw inspiration from.”

I delivered a greeting also. “CiP is a plan involving industry, academia, and the government to create a special zone that accumulates tech and pop in CiP. We are working on this project through a community of 60 companies ahead of our opening next year. The focus of our project is IT and entertainment, which are the strengths of Tokyo, whereas Aichi Prefecture has many elements that are not available in Tokyo, such as automobiles, robots, and space. I hope we can serve a purpose.”

“Core players from industry, academia, and the government have aligned, a global network has been built, a location has been prepared, there is a public budget for encouragement, and the leader is extremely motivated. I have never seen a project that has put together all of these aspects. The issue is the activation of the community. This is where effort is needed.”

The model involves horizontal expansion of the Tokyo CiP Tech & Pop hub in Aichi Prefecture.

Major projects are lining up, with Tokyo in 2020, Nagoya in 2022, and the Osaka World Expo in 2025. There are also new plans for incubation in Kyoto and Fukuoka.

I would like to develop a national plan that links these locations.

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Launch of the Esports Activation Review Conference

 ■Launch of the Esports Activation Review Conference

The “Review Conference on Measures to Activate Esports” has begun.

It is hosted by the Japan Esports Union (JeSU) through a commission from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry. I am serving as the chairperson.

While researching the market size and the conditions overseas, we will identify the purpose and issues of esports, and seek action by the industrial world, government, and municipalities.

Committee members include professional esports players, the Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association, operators of teams, operators of tournaments and events, Intel, Nippon TV, Goldman Sachs, the Japan Association of Travel Agents, attorneys, hospitals, and municipalities. The Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry; the Cabinet Office Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters; the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts, and Telecommunications; the Consumer Affairs Agency; and the Japan Sports Agency are also participating.

I delivered a greeting.

“Esports are finally becoming serious.

　As JeSU reported at Tokyo Game Show, the environment is being prepared, as regulatory issues are being resolved.

　If last year was the first year for esports in Japan, the next objective is for Japan to become a major force in esports and eventually be the global center.

　5G also attracted attention at Tokyo Game Show, and this is an opportunity for a great leap in development, as esports and 5G started up simultaneously in Japan.

　Japan will be attracting attention from around the world ahead of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

　This conference will also focus on what kind of strategy should be implemented with what timing.

　Numerous parties involved have come to this venue.

　Esports is a growing field that cannot be contained in a single industry.

　It is expressive culture, education, and social participation and contributes to regional revitalization.

　I would like to uncover and transmit its significance and potential.

　There may be negative views on games, but I would like to reverse these views and shine a light.

　I would like to turn this into action by the government and industrial world.”

1. As a sport, how will it incorporate the perspectives of players and fans?

2. As an industry, how will it see events, the media, business opportunities, and investments?

3. As a public service, how will it incorporate education, healthcare, welfare, administration, laws, and systems?

I shared that there are various angles.

I took on a robust and varied task that is difficult to organize.

This is the first serious esports strategic council in Japan after all.

By the way, this conference will be fully open.

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World’s First IoT Broadcast

 ■World’s First IoT Broadcast

Regarding the fusion of communication and broadcasting, I have promoted “IPDC,” in which communication protocol IPs are put on radio waves for broadcasting, since 10 years ago.

The “IPDC Forum” has received a special experimental station permit for this V-High band.

We will carry out IPDC experiments using this permit.

We will develop broadcasting use cases and explore a new business model for broadcasting companies.

I serve as the representative of the IPDC Forum, which is comprised of 38 member companies, including broadcast stations, manufacturers, advertisers, software companies, and communication companies.

V-High is a TV frequency band from the past that became unused when terrestrial digital broadcasting was prepared. NOTTV had been using it since then, but it had been unused due to their withdrawal of operations.

The experiments will take place in the Pop & Tech Special Zone CiP in Takeshiba, Minato, Tokyo. Takeshiba CiP cumulatively introduces the latest technology, such as AI and IoT, and advocates for a radio wave special zone. It will introduce IoT broadcasting through IPDC. This will be the first attempt in the world.

This system involves superimposing IP signals on broadcast waves and using the broadcast network that has been prepared all over the country to send various information and IoT control information to smartphones, computers, and IoT devices.

First, we envision usage in the field of preventing and reducing the effects of natural disasters. We will develop a use case to support broadcasting by delivering detailed information and specialized regional information that cannot be fully shared on the TV or radio to smartphones and IP devices using broadcast waves.

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Opening of iU and 10 Challenges

 ■Opening of iU and 10 Challenges

iU has received a decision by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology approving its establishment and will officially open.

We will create a university that does not exist anywhere else in the world. I will serve as the President.

https://www.i-u.ac.jp/

iU has the longest official name in Japan of “Information Management Innovation Professional University.”

We put innovation in the name of a university for the first time in the world, but the only “name” is iU.

Information management whatever is an “explanation” that we are a university that nurtures specialized professionals that will innovate in information ICT and business management.

Regardless, we will go with “iU” as the actual name.

This is similar to how everybody says MIT instead of the explanation of Massachusetts Institute of Technology or APU instead of Ristumeikan Asia Pacific University. We will work hard so that we are called iU.

Because you are here, I am here.

You & I　　iU

I am uploading the “10 challenges.”

1 Information x Management x Innovation

　The curriculum, which is based on ICT x Business x Projects and allows students to attain the ability to drive development using English, has an unmatched formation.

　We will nurture professionals who can thrive in any industry or field using a foundation of digital skills.

2 Learn with companies

　80% of professors have experience working at companies.

　The companies include NTT, IBM, Apple, Disney, SAP, NHK, Dwango, Fujitsu, DeNA, Nikkei, Coca Cola, Yoshimoto Kogyo, and the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry. All students will do internships at companies for about half a year to sharpen their skills.

3 Create with companies

　We will also partner with over 200 companies. We will deepen the connection between industry and academia.

　The partners will include NTT, SoftBank, KDDI, CISCO, SAP, Panasonic, NEX, mixi, GREE, SEGA, Dwango, and TBS and will continue to grow.

4 Hub of worldly knowledge

　This will be a hub university that accumulates the knowledge of the world. Top visiting professors will assemble here. There will be over 200 visiting professors. This university will have more professors than students.

5 Tokyo x Tokyo

　The campus will be in Sumida near Tokyo Skytree and will be open.

　I want something exciting to happen with everybody in the region every day, whether it is through a project, event, or the food hall.

　The first satellite campus will be in Takeshiba, the Pop & Tech Special District near the bay, to become a protruding island of industry and academia connection.

6 Virtual x Real

　There will not be (many) lectures. Of course, smartphones and online functions will be used heavily. Studying can be done in the palms of students’ hands.

　Real studying will also be focused on being hands-on. Students will move their hands and feet to create.

　We will use virtual and real elements to their fullest extent.

7 Employment for everybody

We will establish “i Co., Ltd.” so that all student faculty members can join the company to earn a wage.

　Faculty members and students will actually experience business through connections with the industrial world. Let’s earn our own tuition.

8 Entrepreneurship for everybody

　We will make all students take on the challenge of starting a business. We will provide every student with funding and units for 1 opportunity to start a business. It is OK to fail.

Of course, we will aim for success and exiting. Let’s go for a “0% employment rate.”

9 Education special zone

We would like to establish a “campus education special zone.”

　Since the Takeshiba satellite campus has already been approved as a National Strategic Special Zone, we would like to apply for this also.

　We are thinking of a robot/drone special zone, mobility special zone, radio wave special zone, entrepreneurship special zone, and exchange student visa special zone, among other measures.

10 Learning of tomorrow

　We will cooperate with universities around the world and aim for credit transfers and usage passports for overseas campuses.

　Furthermore, we will work with other universities, high schools, and middle schools to introduce “learning of tomorrow” by creating learning courses that go beyond the framework of school and enabling super-grade skipping.

What is important is the school song.

We had Shonen Knife make “Let’s Go iU.”

It has to be the most rock and roll school song in the world!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bwe_zUKU4Yg&feature=youtu.be

We transmit various things on the YouTube “iU Channel.”

This is a short movie with a preview of a class in iU.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDZ5aAZ_TuGz058tdYNQizg

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My Desire to Change the Gloomy Atmosphere

 ■My Desire to Change the Gloomy Atmosphere

It was reported that Japan was selected as 2nd overall in the international ranking of “Best Countries.” It appears that stability and the future outlook were rated highly.

1st was Switzerland.

It appears to have been recognized as a “stable, open country” with a mature society and developed financial system.

3rd was Canada, 4th was Germany, and 5th was the United Kingdom.

The United States slumped at 27th due to a loss of reliability and leadership as a result of the Trump effect.

China rose due to its power and future outlook but came in at 16th.

Japan is rated very well.

However, there is bad information as usual.

In most countries, the impression held by its own citizens outperforms the impression held by foreigners. On the contrary, the results suggest that other countries think well of Japan, but Japan does not think that it is wonderful.

This is an issue of self-esteem.

Although international research concludes that “Japan is the most creative country,” Japan finished last by a wide margin in the question of “are you creative?”

The youth of Japan believe that they are not creative, do not demonstrate any will or potential to create, do not emphasize the power of the internet, and believe that the customary form of education involving memorization.

I don’t know when self-esteem became so low, but maybe it wasn’t so gloomy in the past. I believe this is an issue with the atmosphere that has continued for 30 years since the price bubble burst.

The following is a quote from “The Third Man” by Orson Welles.

“In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, they had five hundred years of democracy and peace – and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”

Nicholas Negroponte, founder of the MIT Media Lab, once muttered that Switzerland is a “finished country.” It was an inadvertent comment, but it left a strong impression.

It could be that by calling it a “finished country,” Negroponte meant that Switzerland has matured through its long history but does not have any significant innovation in the modern age, so it has lost its luster, although it has not sunk.

Since he attended a school in Switzerland when he was young, I believe this was an emotional comment.

In studies by the World Economic Forum, Switzerland was 1st in competitive ability for 9 consecutive years until last year.

Therefore, it is not close to being finished.

He could be pointing to its decreased presence overall when considering politics, society, and culture in addition to the economy by saying that it is finished.

However, it sounded like he was criticizing Japan to me. He has told me this in person.

Japan fell behind in digitalization and is on a path toward being finished. It is stagnating and sinking.

Even Negroponte, who relied on a lot of funding from Japan when founding Media Lab in 1985, is seeing Japan in that manner.

With that said, these 2 countries finished 1st and 2nd in this study.

They demonstrate maturation rather than growth. They are stable rather than dynamic.

Perhaps the world sees the future in “finished countries.”

Despite that, it will be gloomy unless we can increase our self-esteem.

IoT and AI have brought another chance to demonstrate manufacturing capabilities, and there are chances as an advanced nation that is troubled with an aging population and natural disasters, but there are few opportunities for innovation through science and technology.

There is little intention to chase the United States, advance together with Asia, or be cunning like France or the Netherlands.

On the other hand, leaders in the United States and Europe say that they can work with Japan and have not been at odds with China and India lately.

Our position as being stable, not doing bad things, and exporting Pikachu and Doraemon means that we are probably a good friend to the world.

Let’s not be gloomy. Let’s change the atmosphere and face the world with a smile.

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Super-Filtering as an Online Safety Measure for the Youth!?

 ■Super-Filtering as an Online Safety Measure for the Youth!?

I will serve as the chief investigator for the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts, and Telecommunications Task Force for Preparing an Environment for Safe and Secure Internet Use by the Youth.

According to a study by the Cabinet Office, internet usage by the youth is 93%, which is almost all of them. Smartphone usage is 63%.

In the group of youth aged 9 and under, internet usage is 57%, and smartphone usage is 33%.

99% of high school students have their own smartphone. 36% of elementary school students have their own smartphone, and 57% share a smartphone with their parents.

For the youth aged 11-12, smartphone ownership jumped by 25%, with smartphone ownership now exceeding shared usage.

98% of guardians of youth aged 9 and under manage their children’s internet usage.

93% allow for smartphone usage only in places where an adult can see. 58% have designated a time and place for usage.

On the other hand, only 9% use filtering.

Safety and security measures are progressing.

The logo is the same for filtering provided by each communication company. “High School Plus,” which allows usage of social networking services, was added. Settings can be customized easily. The operating system features of iOS and Android can be used now. Measures are stacking on top of each other.

Since filtering is also effective as an antipiracy measure, public needs for dissemination are growing.

Relevant parties continue to put in touching effort. However, dissemination of filtering has dropped below 40% and is trending down. This is the issue.

The following measures have been put in place to support the activity of all relevant parties.

・Publication of actual data regarding filtering usage by mobile phone businesses and solicitation to distributors

・Promotion of efforts by OS businesses (Apple, Google), MVNO, and social networking service providers

・Educational promotion, dissemination of services that are easy to use, and information transmission

Important data was presented by the Japan Internet Safety Promotion Association (JISPA).

While “smartphone dependency” is a concern for over 80% of guardians regarding their children’s smartphone use, illicit access to harmful information, which is the main purpose of filtering, is only a concern for over 30%.

The top 3 concerns of smartphone dependency, the effect on education and grades, and the effect on the body and health are by far the most commonly recognized by guardians as risks of smartphone usage. They see “use for long periods of time” as an issue.

Perhaps filtering is not spreading well because the thoughts of the providers do not line up with the concerns of the users.

Since filtering has features that restrict and control usage time, the promotion of filtering matches the needs of users (parents).

However, it is possible that both providers and users are hesitant because filtering of inappropriate information prohibits use of apps and social networking services, resulting in inconvenience.

Since filtering has various roles, JISPA proposes a different term for filtering that blocks harmful information.

That is “super-filtering!”

Filtering provides good health and makes people smarter.

There may be a need to switch over to a positive route.

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Takeoff of the Artist Commons for Numbering Artist IDs!

 ■Takeoff of the Artist Commons for Numbering Artist IDs!

Artist Commons Corporation was started up.

It will assign a unique ID for each artist for smooth linkage between media and content services.

This project that was being advanced based on the CiP Council is becoming independent and turning into a company.

Artist Commons (AC) was formed jointly by 8 organizations and 2 companies in music and entertainment, including the Japan Association of Music Enterprises, the Federation of Music Producers Japan, and the All Japan Concert & Live Entertainment Promoters Conference (ACPC).

In the media environment focused on smartphones, users tend to fall into a small world called the filter bubble, decreasing the number of opportunities for them to encounter various content produced by artists.

Insufficient linkage between services, such as online transmission, tickets, news, ranking, and broadcasting, and the difficulty of obtaining authorization for rights are considered to be the causes.

Under these circumstances, music and entertainment organizations and academic research institutes have repeated research and experiments since 2016 in an attempt to jointly develop and produce the “AC-ID” common artist ID and the “AC-API” linkage program in order to build out information infrastructure to increase added value of artists by making it easier to link services.

In addition to linkage with services such as for tracks on the air on the radio and for concert tickets, the “AC-ID” artist ID is expected to be useful in various scenarios, such as simultaneous transmission of TV, accurately grasping usage situations in catch-up options, and the improvement of user convenience.

Numbering has already begun, with musical artists coming first, and subjects will be expanded to celebrities, actors, athletes, intellectual and others moving forward.

Users can jump to songs and videos from artist names.

Users can also easily access concerts, tickets, social networking accounts, and merchandise.

Businesses can grasp performers in video transmission and the usage of music easily.

It provides a foundation that easily links various services, such as for concerts, subscriptions, news, charts, social networking sites, broadcasting, and video transmission.

We have run tests with radiko, Ticket PIA, E Plus, Lawson Tickets, and others to make it possible to jump directly to ticket agency websites from tracks on the air and purchase tickets.

We have become a company to finally complete implementation and begin our services.

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Stepping Down as Chairperson of the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters Committee - Part 2

 ■Stepping Down as Chairperson of the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters Committee - Part 2

From 2015, entering the second half of my 10 years, the stage following the internet and smartphones became an important theme.

Distribution has transitioned to 5G and the cloud, and there are varied environments in terms of devices and usage, such as IoT and VR.

AI- and data-driven advertising and sales strategies became mainstream in the content business.

AI + data became the central theme.

The Next-Generation Intellectual Property System Evaluation Committee was established in 2016, and the New Information Goods Committee was established in 2017. I served as Chairperson for both committees.

This involved AI, 3D printing, and databases. Then, the topic of discussions changed from AI intellectual property to data. I was proud that this was a discussion that led the world.

However, the world actually took the lead, as major companies like GAFA and BAT, as well as powerful nations like the United States, the EU, and China, fought each other over hegemony. Japan is making an effort, such as by pointing to the G20 as a place to work on this issue, but its presence is weak.

On the policy side, there is data utilization based on the Basic Act to Promote the Utilization of Public and Private Data and the promotion of open data.

There is also the preparation of PDS (personal data stores), information banks, and data exchange markets.

The IT headquarters are the main force behind these agenda points, and the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters is taking a support role.

This is a link between intellectual property policy and IT policy.

In 2018, antipiracy measures attracted attention. This is also a field that brings intellectual property and IT together.

Discussions regarding the government policy for blocking heated up in April, and a countermeasure council was established. Although I served as a Joint Chairperson, talks became complicated. The countermeasure council was postponed indefinitely in October, as a law for blocking could not be established.

In terms of pirated versions, there is a clash between intellectual property strategy (copyrights) and IT strategy (secrecy of communication), which are both rights that are guaranteed by the Law of Japan, and adjustments on both ends are a major issue.

This was an issue that spanned multiple government agencies, such as the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters; the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts, and Telecommunications; and the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

At the same time, it is expected for the number of policies related to intellectual property, content, IT, and technology to increase.

In 2019, I formulated the 2nd Intellectual Property Strategy Vision, following from the ’13 edition.

The previous version faced the transition from digital to smart, but the principal objective for this version was Society 5.0, AI, and IoT. Social issues, such as SDGs, the declining birth rate and aging population, and environmental energy, also exist in the background.

After 10 years in charge, we are advancing into another stage.

The reason I began to wear Japanese clothes was also the Intellectual Property Headquarters.

On the topic of “Cool Japan,” the discussion involved bringing together different genres, such as fashion, food, and sightseeing, into content. The words “but everybody here is wearing Western clothes” slipped out of my mouth.

Multiple members of the committee said, “Then you should lead us in Japanese clothes.” 10 years have passed since then.

I will continue to wear Japanese clothes as I participate as a member of the committee.

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Stepping Down as Chairperson of the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters Committee - Part 1

 ■Stepping Down as Chairperson of the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters Committee - Part 1

The Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters Committee underwent a renewal. I will continue to serve as a member of the committee, but I am stepping down as Chairperson. This comes after serving as the Chairperson for 10 years.

10 years ago, I wrote, “Although the cultural abilities (expressive abilities) that Japan excels in, along with technical abilities, are recognized around the world as “Cool Japan,” our latent potential on the industrial side are not being fully expressed, resulting in us not making the most of our soft power. I will form intellectual property strategies that will comprehensively utilize the combination of technical abilities (manufacturing abilities) and cultural abilities (expressive abilities).”

My principal objective was to transition the domestic emphasis and industrial development of the past into global emphasis and infrastructure preparation.

The 2 main pillars were 1. the Cool Japan Policy (overseas development) and 2. digital internet support (foundation preparation).

At the same time, this was also a strategy to shift the axis of content policies from digitalization to smartization.

The shift was from computers + the internet + content to smartphones + the cloud + social media (platforms).

I exerted myself toward these policies for the first half of my 10 years. In 2013, I decided on the “Intellectual Property Policy Vision” as the strategy for the next 10 years.

1. A promotion council was set up for the Cool Japan Policy to formulate foreign strategies.

I also served as the Chairperson of the “Pop Culture Subcommittee.”

In my proposal, I wrote “Everybody should ‘participate’ in transmitting information. This should not be led by the government and should involve everybody instead.” I denied the government taking a lead in a government council.

The Cool Japan Fund was established in 2013, and policy tools for funding were enhanced.

The overseas market grew by 26% over the last 5 years, 500 businesses working with video content made efforts to expand globally in 5 years, and overseas sales of companies supported by the government increased by nearly 200 billion yen.

Looking at the 5 years since 2011, anime has grown by a factor of 2.9 times, and games have grown by a factor of 3.6 times

Movies have grown by a factor of 2.8 times, although their scale is not large. TV and broadcasting have grown by a factor of 4.4 times.

Overseas sales have increased.

This is a significant change, and it can be said that the policies have had an impact.

2. Online support is not succeeding.

Japan as a whole lost to the United States in IT support. The same holds true for content.

There are wide discrepancies in network transmission rates across genres, as the rates are 40% for manga, 15% for anime, 8% for music, and 4% for videos. Businesses running pirated versions and online giants from overseas are becoming a threat.

Pirated versions are a headache for manga.

Netflix is trying to corner the global market in anime.

Even in games, Google is working on transitioning to the cloud on 5G, presenting the possibility of a structural change.

CDs account for 70% of music in Japan, while the structure is completely different in the rest of the world, where subscription services already make up near 50% of revenue.

During this time, results were made in systematic preparation of a foundation, as the Intellectual Property Promotion Plan was used for systemization in many aspects, such as the revision of the Copyright Act to correspond to the online age and systemization of digital textbooks.

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National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan Online Digital Strategy 2019

 ■National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan Online Digital Strategy 2019

I will serve as the chairperson for the Online Digital Research Society for the National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan.

The report for this fiscal year has been put together, and I wrote the foreword.

--------------------------------

For last year’s foreword, I wrote, “The fishy wind of politics is blowing.” This was to cast doubt on the principles of the administration to review broadcasting regulations and the radio wave system. The discussions subsequently normalized, and once things had settled down, a revision was enacted to the Broadcast Act that would clear the path for regular simultaneous online transmission by NHK. A new chapter begins.

Although there was some concern directed toward NHK, there have been 12 years of solid experience with digital online support outside of Japan, as simultaneous transmission for the BBC began in 2008. During this time, a legal system to bring together communication and broadcasting was prepared in Japan, and preparations for terrestrial digital broadcasting were completed, but communication has led digital online elements.

While smartphone-first is becoming the norm, Netflix and Amazon are taking video transmission seriously, following in the footsteps of the efforts of Google and Apple toward smart-TV. As soon as the curtains open, the next wind blows in. The report by committee member Takashi Uchiyama drills down on this situation and the business of advertising and VoD.

What should be done? The members of this project decided to research the United Kingdom. What we saw was the BBC and commercial broadcasting cooperating to fend off the United States. They created BritBox, the common platform, and formed a community so that broadcast stations can use viewer data.

Furthermore, the BBC and commercial broadcasting have both outsourced hardware (transmission through radio waves and cables) to Red Bee Media, which manages the content from all broadcast stations on an IP based system, which involves the use of software on a cloud environment. This was shocking.

Content is sent to the cloud and then delivered to TVs, smartphones, computers, and various other devices through radio waves, cables, and various other devices. This is likely the future state of the fusion of communication and broadcasting. There was also a rumor that the BBC will give up ground waves in 17 years.

Having been invited to the Diet as a witness regarding the revised Broadcast Act, I tried raising a question with these conditions in mind.

Could Japan be like the United Kingdom and institute a strategy involving the preparation of a foundation that connects the NHK and commercial broadcasting? A simultaneous transmission platform, like radiko for TV, should be created. A connected foundation to promote IP cloud support and the use of data should be build out.

By forming a shared platform across broadcast stations, promotion can be improved. By preparing an IP cloud base, content can be deployed to various devices through various transmission paths while significantly reducing costs. Big data on viewing histories can be used to lead viewing behavior through AI. Can a foundation like this be created?

During last year’s foreword, I concluded that “proactively presenting a vision that determines the future” was necessary as we enter fusion 2.0. However, now that we have already entered a new stage, I am rethinking this statement, as individual actions at each site may be what is required instead of a vision.

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Plans, Execution, and the Other Side

 ■Plans, Execution, and the Other Side

●Plans

　I call myself a policymaker because all I do is draft policies. However, this is a concept I came up with, and “social entrepreneur” is the closest title among those that are commonly used in society. 20 years have passed since I left public office to go to university when I was almost 40 years old, and I have started over 20 social businesses, such as public service corporations and projects.　

Let’s promote entrepreneurship. Let’s lower the threshold. iU aims for everybody to start a business and produces entrepreneurs. In “A World of Three Zeros,” Muhammad Yunus states that over 80% of Ugandans start a business at some point in their lives. These involved opening a small store or buying a goat. These types of business are fine to begin with.

　What kind of abilities are necessary to accomplish this? Some examples are the ability to plan, come up with ideas, discover things, frame questions, find interest, and identify problems. Each time that a student asks me what should be done, I respond that I take drinking parties seriously. What is important is to jot down all of the ideas from these parties in a project book the next day.

●Execution

　The main issue is that “how” is more important than “what.” How should plans be carried out? How should problems be resolved? How should technology be introduced? This involves the abilities of execution, resolution, and implementation.

　I only spoke about this to students for 10 years at KMD. The idea is to prioritize “how” over “what.” This holds more importance in society than coming up with ideas, which big-headed students are good at, and planning skills that students want to learn. iU will also emphasize this. This involves the legs rather than the head, the ability not to get discouraged, and endurance.

　In reality, most of this involves persuasion and adjustments, pushing and pulling, listening and speaking, bowing and being assertive, crying and laughing, and sweating a lot.

　Is something so unrefined being taught at university? That’s right. The industrial world seeks these types of communication abilities from human resources, but universities have not responded to this. Instead of the ability to make plans, I believe that the ability to carry them out over a year without getting discouraged is on a much higher level. This requires strategizing, military logistics, organizational management, and schedule adjustment.

●The Other Side

　Actually, the main issue is what comes next.

　When I watch a program on Netflix about Michelin starred restaurants, a surprisingly high number of chefs do not create recipes. They say, “I make what flows out of me,” and “I take my morning inspiration and turn it into food,” as if this is the obvious thing to do.

　They have no project book. They don’t work on design. Their ideas and implementation are unified.

　They are like improvisational musicians who do not write songs or lyrics.

　With that said, they simply repeatedly make food for guests who are not enthusiasts day after day and get the reputation of being first-class. What is the true nature of these abilities? Is it God-given or the accumulation of training?

　Chefs then share this inspiration by mouth to staff members and turn it into food as a team. This ability to convey concepts and manage a team while maintaining a standard for the output is a mystery to me.

　Perhaps it is second-rate to include inspiration in designs, project books, or papers. Are these abilities a personality trait that can be attained? Maybe I should ask people at a culinary school.

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Sharing Economy Report Summary

 ■Sharing Economy Report Summary

The Cabinet Secretariat “Sharing Economy Evaluation Meeting” that I participated in put together a secondary report.

The mid-term report from 2 years ago was held up by the pillars of:

1) Securing safety and reliability through voluntary rules

2) Efforts to clear up gray zones

3) Establishing and sharing leading best practices through municipalities

Below are the results of these efforts.

1) Service popularization: Recognition increased by 11.8% in a year to 42.4%

2) Market size expansion: 50.3 billion yen in fiscal year 2016 and projected as 107.1 billion yen in fiscal year 2021

The plan for promotion is to carry out the following 3 elements together.

1) Make the contribution of platformers toward business more efficient

2) Prepare ways for providers and users to determine safety and reliability

3) Support social implementation and international development

With that said, the following comprise the “Action Plan to Accelerate Sharing Economy Promotion.”

1) Revise model guidelines and update certification standards

2) Evaluate consumer guidelines (how to use the sharing economy), compliance with international standards for reviews, and methods of visualizing trust

3) Create 100 regional use cases

Items to be assessed in detail moving forward are the following.

1) Smartization of dispute resolution functions

2) Creation of the “Certified Shared Worker System (tentative name)”

Based on the above, the sharing economy model guidelines from the mid-term report have been updated.

There was a tense exchange between committee members and the government during the meeting  regarding whether or not ride sharing should be listed.

There are still some walls that we have not broken down regarding regulation, but the situation is improving.

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I Learned About Cutting-Edge AI and IoT at Super University

 ■I Learned About Cutting-Edge AI and IoT at Super University

Super University was a 3-day course held at the Learning of Tomorrow Association to discuss cutting-edge technologies that will nurture next-generation leaders, hold workshops, and develop a community to break down the walls of universities.

There were tens of participants, including young proprietors and potential executives at major companies.

Professors Yutaka Matsuo and Noboru Koshizuka from the University of Tokyo spoke about AI and IoT.

Mr. Matsuo: “The Future of Artificial Intelligence: What Lies Ahead of Deep Learning”

Mr. Koshizuka: “IoT and AI Usage and Data Strategies Toward Society 5.0”

Mr. Matsuo: “Although the media, led by GAFA, is fighting over advertisements, the agriculture, construction, and food industries, which have not implemented automation and AI, are far larger than advertising.”

That is exactly the case. Industry sizes are 6 trillion yen for advertising, 9 trillion yen for agriculture, 50 trillion yen for construction, and 680 trillion yen for food. Education (20 trillion yen) and healthcare (30 million yen) are also massive. They have yet to come on board.

Mr. Matsuo: “Up to this point, the world has built models that can be handled with few parameters within the limits of human cognition. Deep learning allows for analysis and action with numerous parameters.”

In other words, this means that humans will finally accept the limits of their cognition and use technology that goes beyond these limits.

On the other hand, Mr. Koshizuka states, “IoT is a set of technologies, including AI, robotics, beacons, data, wireless, and servers, built around the internet.” He states it “includes everything,” and is “very difficult” because it is a “varied, complex system.”

Although people refer to AI and IoT together, they may have completely opposite traits.

Mr. Koshizuka: “GAFA only has 0.1% of all of the data in the world. The remaining 99.9% of unique and secret data that is dispersed and siloed causes issues in data circulation.”

Although there is a sense of danger when engaging in the same business as GAFA, but what must be done is different. This has the same origin as the business areas to aim for that Mr. Matsuo pointed to.

Mr. Koshizuka: “Let’s allow AI and robots to take our jobs and increase productivity so that things are easier for us.” This follows the same logic as my desire for a “super-bored society.” “The issue is distribution.” The greatest task for the super-bored society where AI and robots work is distribution strategies rather than growth strategies.

“The benefit of AI is that it does not become discouraged. Let’s make them do stressful jobs.

・HR managers in charge of restructuring

・Phone support for customer claims

・Teachers (handling monster parents)”

“Jobs for robots are jobs in which people do not want to be seen by other people and jobs that people do not want other people to do.

・Bathing during nursing

・Electronic bidet”

Many things come to mind. Let’s let them take our jobs.

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The Intellectual Property Plan Somehow Came Together

 ■The Intellectual Property Plan Somehow Came Together

The Intellectual Property Plan was finalized during a council at the Prime Minister’s Office, which the Prime Minister and cabinet members attended.

This is the 10th plan since I was appointed Joint Chairperson.

Since Japanese clothes became mandated as part of the Cool Japan policy during the first round, this means that 10 years have passed since Japanese clothes became required.

First, the 3 pillars of “beyond average,” “fusion,” and “empathy” were established to achieve the “Value Design Society” that was included in the “Intellectual Property Strategic Vision” that was formulated last year.

Beyond average: Enhance individual entities and encourage them to take on challenges

Fusion: Bring together various dispersed entities and accelerate new bonds

Empathy: Create an environment in which values can easily be achieved

Up next was antipiracy measures.

The conclusion was, “Steps necessary to execute comprehensive sets of measures for related ministries and agencies, such as to execute effective copyright education, promote official distribution channels, strengthen international cooperation and execution, establish search site measures, regulate advertisements for pirated sites, and evaluate other potentially effective systems, will be carried out.”

During this term, intellectual property strategies in the field of content received a lot of attention among antipiracy measures, and although it was a great achievement that comprehensive measures were completed, differences in opinion regarding intellectual property and IT also surfaced, presenting a major issue for future attempts to build intellectual property and IT strategies. It would be beneficial to continue to explore intellectual property strategies in the digital age.

“Fusion” measures include the promotion of open innovation, establishment of an intellectual property platform, creation of a system and rules to promote the appropriate use of data and AI, and the realization of a digital archive society.

It was interesting that the revision of approval scheme guidelines for information entrustment features and the introduction of an information bank were brought up.

“Empathy” measures include the construction of a creation ecosystem and the continuous enhancement of Cool Japan strategies.

The preparation of database with rights information in the field of music and the preparation of foreign language metadata needed to enter the global market through international music transmission services are topics related to our Artist Commons and SyncMusic.

An important item was brought up.

“Regarding the facilitation of rights processing, including system revisions involving the handling of neighboring rights for simultaneous transmission, will begin to be evaluated in detail by related ministries and agencies soon within the fiscal year, with plenty of consideration of the will of related parties, and a conclusion will be made regarding the nature of the system will be made within this fiscal year, while also steadily incorporating operational improvements.”

A revision was enacted to the Broadcast Act to allow simultaneous transmission by NHK, but copyright processing is a bottleneck for online transmission. The Japanese system, which requires consent for each instance, is seen as a problem, and rightsholders, such as those in the music industry, have also sought changes to the system. This is the next major theme.

Next, the item from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry was, “The nature of governance over competitive tournaments will be assessed for sound development of the esports industry.” This is the start of the esports policy.

The last measure brought up was “the operation of a professional university system to assist in nurturing human resources for Cool Japan.” iU, which will be established as a professional university, will assist in this effort.

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Discussion in the House of Representatives Regarding Deliberation on the Broadcast Act - Part 2

 ■Discussion in the House of Representatives Regarding Deliberation on the Broadcast Act - Part 2

○Ideas behind a common platform

・Preparation can be expected for a platform that handles common issues, such as transmission bases, apps, and rights processing.

・Next-generation media measures, such as IP cloud and data analysis, can also be expected.

・Cooperation with the communication and IT industries would be preferable, instead of only working within the broadcasting industry.

○Copyrights issues

・Under the Copyright Act, records and productions can be freely broadcast if a usage fee is paid, but separate approval is needed for transmission.

・In order to facilitate this processing, revising the system regarding online transmission can be considered, but adjustments between private companies (internet/broadcast stations and rightsholders) should be the first priority. NHK is expected to take a lead.

○The impact of simultaneous transmission by NHK on commercial broadcasting

・Commercial broadcasting should continue with free business judgment. This is an environment in which more rich content can be developed using data and AI.

・Various strategies can be seen, as Nippon TV acquired hulu, Fuji TV provides content to Netflix, and TV Asahi developed CA and Abema TV.

○The impact on local stations and their measures

・The question will be how much they have prepared during the 27 years since the theory for fusion of communication and broadcasting was introduced.

・They are holding up well, considering that in 10 years, CD sales have halved and bookstores have been reduced by 30%.

・A major wave is approaching. There may be industry reorganization and consolidation. Management capabilities will finally be questioned.

・Deregulation (the removal of mass media concentration, prefectural and regional licensing) can also be considered, but the will of the industry comes first. The government should not jump the gun on this matter.

・Each station has begun carrying out their strategies, such as offering more regional programming, enhancing events, and bringing in online users. Their activities will be interesting.

○NHK content should not develop overseas

・NHK programs are national assets. They should be utilized to their fullest extent.

・The government is also putting an effort into overseas development of broadcasting content, as the scale has increased by a factor of 4.4 times in the 5 years from 2010.

・There is still latent potential. I would like an effort to be made to cooperate with commercial broadcasting.

○Effective measures for utilizing satellite frequency

・I would like to promote their entry into broadcasting so that citizens can enjoy a richer video culture, but the biggest issue is frequency strain. Satellite waves are a valuable resource.

・It would be meaningful to develop compression technologies, make it possible to broadcast on a small frequency band, and improve and diversify services that promote new entries.

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Discussion in the House of Representatives Regarding Deliberation on the Broadcast Act - Part 1

 ■Discussion in the House of Representatives Regarding Deliberation on the Broadcast Act - Part 1

Having been invited as a witness to the House of Representatives’ Committee on Internal Affairs and Communications regarding the revised Broadcast Act that would clear the path for NHK to simultaneously transmit their regular programming on the internet, I received questions regarding all aspects from Diet members from all parties.

○Why regular simultaneous transmission?

・As the internet becomes infrastructure, being able to receive signals at anytime from anywhere without additional costs strengthens the right to knowledge.

・As normal simultaneous transmission takes place in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and South Korea, as well as for the 4 major networks in the United States, it must be discussed why normal simultaneous transmission is not allowed in Japan.

・This is a policy decision on whether or not the internet is seen as infrastructure. I believe that it became infrastructure 12 years ago.

○Squeezing the private sector

・I understand concerns from commercial broadcasting. However, I cannot believe that there is a national basis for 2.5%.

・Looking beyond simultaneous transmission, it is important to consider the perspectives of how much investment is necessary to improve utility of IT utilization and use of data and AI for citizens, and how a new media environment will be built out in conjunction with commercial broadcasting.

・Under the circumstances of a changing global media environment, including IT, and expansion of foreign businesses into Japan, it is important to consider the perspective of what kind of media foundation and business environment should be prepared.

・Investment by and business costs for NHK should be set while considering these perspectives.

○NHK must not become bloated

・Citizens are unlikely to be understanding if NHK becomes bloated without reviewing its overall business and license fees.

・I would like NHK to thoroughly fulfill its role as a public media outlet of universally good broadcasting and cutting-edge development.

・I would like business expansion to be considered together with the revision of its overall business and license fees, as well as disclosure of information and revised governance.

○The state of license fees

・For the time being, it is appropriate to reach out to non-subscribers through the message screen.

・Considering cord-cutting and internet diffusion trends moving forward, there is a need to revise the license fee system.

・The method of collecting fees and charges regardless of whether or not people watch TV, which is utilized in the United Kingdom and Germany, is also worth referencing.

・Although it is not a tax, it is close to a tax. The understanding of citizens as a whole is a major prerequisite.

○The negative impact of the internet

・The internet is essentially infrastructure now, 10 years on from the introduction of the smartphone.

・While fake news becomes prevalent, communication opportunities and communities that were previously unavailable have been created through social networking services. There is an element in which democracy has been strengthened.

・In order to enrich this culture, education to utilize information is important.

○Regulation of content through fusion of communication and broadcasting

・Japanese broadcasting programs are involved in a system that gives autonomy to the program council at each station and the BPO.

・This system functions effectively and maintains the binary system of NHK and commercial broadcasting, as well as a rich broadcasting culture.

・The internet and content represent the third element in this system. Japan is fine, as it is autonomous and free, but the information literacy of its citizens is important.

○Would it be all right to abolish NHK?

・Europe is transitioning from public broadcasting to commercial broadcasting, while the United States is transitioning from commercial to public. However, Japan has a special binary system.

・Since Japanese TV builds a rich culture, the binary system is functioning. This pillar does not need to be changed.

・How can the internet, which is the third element, be enriched? How to educate these users is worth discussing.

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Revisions Enacted to the Broadcast Act with Approval of Simultaneous Transmission by NHK - Part 3

 ■Revisions Enacted to the Broadcast Act with Approval of Simultaneous Transmission by NHK - Part 3

Now I would like to touch on this revision to the law.

I do not have much of an opinion on the enhancement of governance over NHK, duty of loyalty for executives, and the disclosure of information because they are a matter of course, but there is hope that NHK will finally be able to carry out simultaneous transmission.

In addition to the approval of standards for execution and checks in the form of the requirement to submit plans, NHK will be asked to cooperate with commercial broadcasting for their online business.

Attention is being focused on how this cooperation will go.

Japan should take a similar approach to the United Kingdom and implement strategies based on a foundation that connects NHK and commercial broadcasting.

A simultaneous transmission platform, akin to the TV version of radiko, should be created.

A foundation that connects NHK and commercial broadcasting should be built out to promote IP cloud support and data usage.

A shared platform for broadcast stations should be formed to support promotion.

An IP cloud base should be prepared for delivery to various devices through various transmission paths while also significantly reducing costs.

Viewership activity should be solicited using AI to handle big data on viewership history.

It would be beneficial to create this foundation while cooperating.

In addition, the facilitation of copyright processing is presented as an issue to promote online transmission.

Copyright processing is complicated because the positioning of copyrights differs for broadcasting and communication.

There may be a need to revise the system to improve this matter, but efforts between private companies are the first priority.

It is thought that the role that NHK will play here is significant.

The reason that I personally believe this is happening late is because online support is NHK’s obligation in my mind.

Under the Broadcast Act, the objective for NHK is to provide universally good programming, or in other words secure the national minimum and take a lead in making progress on an international scale.

The reason that the Japanese government is involved in designating NHK as a special public corporation is because it must lead Japan while developing and introducing technology.

On a side note, NTT has been designated as a special public corporation in order to provide reliable service and conduct technological research.

However, NHK has fallen behind in introducing new technologies.

Given its relationship with commercial broadcasting, it is rumored that there is a cap of 2.5% of license fees for NHK in order to avoid squeezing the private sector.

There is no special basis behind this figure from a national perspective.

The total is just short of 20 billion yen, but this is not a scale that requires adjustment on a national scale.

I would like there to be an evaluation on how to invest in this field in the 100 billion to 1 trillion yen scale as a national strategy.

What I would like NHK and the Japanese government to do is to improve utility for citizens.

I would like for it to be possible to watch on multiple networks on multiple devices anywhere at any time.

Next is to flesh out support for commercial broadcasting.

Regarding the aforementioned issue, I would like for a next-generation environment to be developed, even if it means using a larger portion of the license fees and cooperating with commercial broadcasting.

It is not time for petty domestic quarreling, as we must pursue policies from the perspective of how the Japanese media industry can survive on the global scale.

There are major tasks associated with this bill.

A discussion from a long-term perspective is now required.

Various themes come to mind, such as systems specific to broadcasting, such as prefectural and regional licensing and the removal of mass media concentration, the objectives and management style of NHK, and the research and development capabilities for communication and broadcasting.

I believe it would be best to carry out major discussions regarding the future of media.

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Revisions Enacted to the Broadcast Act with Approval of Simultaneous Transmission by NHK - Part 2

 ■Revisions Enacted to the Broadcast Act with Approval of Simultaneous Transmission by NHK - Part 2

To summarize the issues for broadcasting succinctly, it is the lack of growth.

Communication has developed significantly through the internet and smartphones over the 27 years since the fusion theory was put forth.

The internet is also catching up to TV in terms of scope of advertising.

TV is doing well to endure while stagnating.

However, there is a significant discrepancy in terms of strength.

The total aggregate market value of the flagship TV stations in Tokyo is just short of 1.4 trillion yen.

NTT’s operating profit for last fiscal year was just short of 1.7 trillion yen.

All stations could be bought out with the profit from 1 year.

Growth strategies cannot be drawn up with broadcasting alone with such a discrepancy in investment capabilities.

The strategies of the broadcasting and video industry in Japan, including NHK and commercial broadcasting, are in question.

The next wave came long ago.

Around 2010, Google and Apple deployed a strategy called smart TV to turn TV into an online device.

Since then, Netflix, Amazon, and other companies have fleshed out video transmission, and the next wave is crashing in from the United States.

We are in a situation where we must figure out what to do.

There are countries that serve as reference.

An example would be the United Kingdom.

Their industry makeup is similar, as they have the BBC and commercial broadcasting.

They are also being attacked by the United States through Netflix, as they are also an English-speaking country.

In order to resist this attack, the BBC and commercial broadcasting are creating a common platform.

Personnel involved all state that this is a countermeasure against the United States.

In the United Kingdom, hardware and software are separated, and the BBC outsources transmission through radio waves and cables.

Red Bee, the hardware operation company, has introduced a system to manage the content of all broadcast stations on an IP basis, or in other words using software on a cloud environment for transmission.

Content is sent to the cloud and sent to TVs, smartphones, computers, and various devices through radio waves, cables, and various networks.

This is likely the future state of the fusion of communication and broadcasting.

There is also a rumor circulating that the BBC will give up radio waves in 10 years.

There is also the issue of data.

Internet advertising is also nearing TV advertising in Japan, and targeted advertising accounts for 1 trillion yen, which comprises 80% of internet advertising.

The access histories and spending habits of users are analyzed. Advertising became a data-driven business.

Instead of differences in the transmission path, whether it is communication or broadcasting, what is perhaps more decisive these days is whether or not viewer data is used.

However, data is not being used in broadcasting.

In the United Kingdom, an NPO has made it possible for broadcast stations to use data by creating a community of broadcast stations and device manufacturers.

It is said that this is also a plan to counteract the United States.

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Revisions Enacted to the Broadcast Act with Approval of Simultaneous Transmission by NHK - Part 1

 ■Revisions Enacted to the Broadcast Act with Approval of Simultaneous Transmission by NHK - Part 1

Revisions were enacted to the Broadcast Act, clearing the path for NHK to simultaneously transmit their regular programming on the internet.

I was invited to the House of Representatives’ Committee on Internal Affairs and Communications to present my opinion as a witness.

This revision is help up by 3 pillars, but the simultaneous transmission by NHK is attracting attention in particular.

I presented my opinion from a standpoint of agreement, or rather that it should have been enacted even sooner.

Simultaneous transmission on the internet promotes the fusion of communication and broadcasting.

However, the term “fusion of communication and broadcasting” was first introduced in 1992 in a report by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications Council on Telecommunication, and this discussion has existed since 27 years ago.

The IT companies Livedoor and Rakuten purchased broadcast stations in 2005, but no special changes took place until now.

Meanwhile, on the global stage, IT companies fired shots in January 2006 by declaring that they would transmit videos, with a focus on content and broadcast stations from Hollywood, to the global market at an event called CES in Las Vegas in the United States.

Broadcast stations in the United States cooperated with IT companies and began transmitting content one after another.

In Europe, public enterprises like the BBC and Orange S.A. (France Telecom at the time) took a leading role in enhancing transmission.

Since NHK On Demand began in late 2008, Japan lagged behind by 3 years.

The BBC also began simultaneous transmission that year.

Even with NHK’s efforts, there was a delay of 12 years.

A big part of this is that there were no incentives to change because the TV business in Japan, including commercial broadcasting, had been steady.

However, preparations continued to put a system in place.

In the past, there were roughly 10 vertically and horizontally tangled regulatory laws in the field of communication and broadcasting. These laws were consolidated to 4 by loosening the vertical divisions in communication and broadcasting, and the system was revised to make it easier to provide services that run across communication and broadcasting, such as by preparing licenses for radio waves that can be used for both communication and broadcasting.

After 5 years of adjustments, this change was enacted in 2011, and Japan prepared a legal system that was a step ahead of the world.

However, few broadcast stations would go on to utilize this system for business, and NHK’s actions were restricted.

At this time, broadcast stations in Japan were busy preparing for terrestrial digital broadcasting. Terrestrial digital broadcasting succeeded in switching from SD to HD to provide cleaner high-resolution pictures but has failed to use computers for convenience, which is the more important feature of digitalization.

The convenient, fun features have been taken by the internet and smartphones.

In terms of the radio, radiko provides simultaneous transmission, but the introduction of ICT for TV, including NHK, is just getting serious, although on demand transmission for commercial broadcasting is being advanced by TVer and other services.

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Content Promotion Measures with the Liberal Democratic Party - Part 2

 ■Content Promotion Measures with the Liberal Democratic Party - Part 2

What is important is that the stage after the internet and smartphones has also arrived for content.

Distribution has transitioned to 5G and the cloud, and there are varied environments in terms of devices and usage, such as IoT and VR.

It is expected for AI- and data-driven advertising and sales strategies to become mainstream in the content business and for management through blockchain to grow.

Online advertising has already grown to a scale that exceeds TV advertising, and 80% of online advertisements are targeted.

In other words, this is a world that is managed by AI using user data. We have already entered the world of AI and data.

Measures to prepare environments for 5G and public viewing and run demonstration experiments for AI and blockchain will also be needed.

I have also been involved in antipiracy measures, and it is essential to find a balance between intellectual property strategies (copyrights) and IT strategies (secrecy of communication) for pirated versions, as each are rights that are guaranteed by the Law of Japan.

This is also an issue that spans multiple government agencies. At the same time, the number of policies regarding intellectual property, content, IT, and technology is expected to increase.

The Federation of Economic Organizations has proposed Ministry of Information Economy Society in order to advance the digital transformation, and I believe that we are approaching the time to reassess the state of institutional frameworks.

I would like to introduce a project called CiP as an example of an ongoing private project.

The idea is to create a base to accumulate content in Takeshiba, Minato, Tokyo.

This town is scheduled to open ahead of the Tokyo Olympics in summer 2020 after redeveloping land owned by the Tokyo Metropolis.

50 companies, organizations, and universities involved in content, broadcasting, communications, and IT will gather here.

There are plans for deregulation regarding matters such as radio waves and robots through designation as a national strategic special zone.

Keio University, Stanford University, and other institutions will be present to advance the connection between industry and academia and nurture human resources.

Although the town will open next year, it has already started working on content and technology projects.

CiP may be the precedent, but there are similar ideas in Haneda, Osaka, and other regions, and the intention is to establish hubs that advance regional connections.

In South Korea, there is a base to accumulate content in Seoul that is prepared and operated through government funding, but this is being advanced privately in Japan.

We would like to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the Olympics, Paralympics, and World Expo.

This concludes my report.

I received questions from the Diet members about esports, pilgrimage tours, piracy, CiP, iU, archives, and platform policies.

They reported that they will put together content strategies as a party.

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Content Promotion Measures with the Liberal Democratic Party - Part 1

 ■Content Promotion Measures with the Liberal Democratic Party - Part 1

I was invited by the Liberal Democratic Party Intellectual Property Investigation Committee to speak on the theme of “The Current State and Tasks for Content Promotion.”

Content policies, which began in the 1990s, saw an upsurge in the 2000s. In the past, they were focused on domestic matters and promoting industry, but they are now transitioning to an emphasis on global and online development based on the declining birth rate in Japan and the global advancement of IT. However, the domestic content market has been stagnant despite our hopes.

The Cool Japan Fund was established in 2013 for global development, demonstrating an enhancement of policy tools in terms of funding along with the J-LOP subsidy. There used to be no interest in expanding overseas in the content market, excluding games and anime, since the domestic market had been sufficient, but a lot of change has been seen during this administration.

The overseas market expanded by 26% in 5 years. It is expected to surpass 2 trillion yen by 2020.

In terms of video content, 500 businesses newly engaged in overseas expansion in 5 years, and overseas sales by companies supported by the government have increased by nearly 200 billion yen.

Looking at the 5 years starting around 2011, anime has grown by a factor of 2.9 times, and games have grown by a factor of 3.6 times.

Movies have grown by a factor of 2.8 times, although their scale is not large. TV and broadcasting have grown by a factor of 4.4 times. Overseas sales have increased.

This is a significant change, and it can be said that the policies have had an impact.

However, there is still room for growth, as Japanese content sales only account for 2.5% of the global market.

Moreover, since many foreign visitors come to Japan with hopes of experiencing pop culture, it is also important to enhance in-bound support (for example, offering multilingual support and increasing the number of pilgrimage tours) in addition to out-bound efforts.

It cannot be said that online development, which is the other pillar, has been a success.

Japan as a whole lost to the United States in IT support. The same holds true for content.

Although network transmission has increased from 9.5% in 2008 to 26.0%, there are wide discrepancies across genres, as the rates are 40% for manga, 15% for anime, 8% for music, and 4% for videos.

Businesses running pirated versions and online giants from overseas are becoming a threat in manga, anime, games, and music. Pirated versions are still a headache for manga.

Although anime had been a TV-oriented business, Netflix and Amazon are attempting to dominate the global video market.

Games had also been a TV-oriented business in Japan, but games have transitioned to an online business in the rest of the world. It has been decided that 5G radio waves would also be transmitted in Japan, but there is a possibility of a structural change, as Google is working on the transition to the cloud on 5G.

Japan is like the Galapagos Islands in terms of music, as CDs make up 70% of revenue, while the structure is completely different in the rest of the world, where subscription services already make up near 50% of revenue.

Although Netflix provides opportunities, such as the provision of funds for content creation and expansion of overseas channels, they take over the business foundation and could take all user data.

In response to this, there are individual measures across the genres.

For manga, there are antipiracy measures.

For anime, there are strategies that combine TV and the internet.

For games, there are measures to expand new industries, such as esports.

For music, there is the facilitation of copyright processing for online transmission.

At the same time, there is also a need to carry out measures that cut across genres, such as when demonstrating bargaining power with Apple or Google for all content, and expand business while working with other fields, such as fashion and food.

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Establishment of the Act to Promote the Computerization of Education

 ■Establishment of the Act to Promote the Computerization of Education

　The Diet established the “Act to Promote the Computerization of School Education.”

1 year prior to this, systemization of “digital textbooks” was achieved through the revisions to the School Education Act and other laws presented by the government.

　This law is the other engine to significantly advance the computerization of school education through comprehensive measures for municipalities to formulate and execute plans for promotion.

　However, digital textbooks and programming are not possible without computers and the internet. We want to enter EdTech as soon as possible but we are still far away. Although the government has established an annual budget of 180 billion yen, municipalities are using this budget for other purposes through the local subsidy tax measure. The engine to divert these funds to the field of education had been weak.

　This law was drafted by the nonpartisan “Parliamentary Association Aiming to Promote ICT Usage for Education.” It began in February 2015, and 83 members, including former ministers from all parties. Nongovernment advisors like myself also participated in the process to submit a bill that we drafted to the Diet, resulting in the establishment of this law.

Originally, the Digital Textbook and Teaching Association (DiTT, currently the Learning of Tomorrow Association) suggested the “establishment of the Act to Promote the Computerization of Education” in 2015, and a policy to assign a caucus of the Diet to establish this law was put in place in 2016.

　There were troublesome issues also. At the beginning, members of the caucus of the Diet, including myself, were blacklisted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology, perhaps because our political activity was frowned upon, and members of the industry hesitated to cooperate.  Given that government officials change every 1-2 years while we had not changed for 20 years, and that we are used to bans, we ignored this and carried on.

　When I was asked for my opinion during the caucus of the Diet, I pointed out that the rest of the world was 2 laps ahead of us in terms of advancing education in the age of AI. Therefore, I established the nongovernment Learning of Tomorrow Association and advocate for a system of cooperation between industry and academia. I stated that preparing infrastructure, such as for bring your own device (BYOD) and the cloud, and developing the latest technologies, such as AI and blockchain, are both important.

　The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology became more forward-thinking, given that the departments and managers had also changed, and began to promote usage of the cloud. A path was also cleared for BYOD, in which students bring their own device to study. They are also showing a proactive stance toward the use of data and AI in education. This can be considered a policy shift that has never been seen before.

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