V-Low multimedia broadcasting

　TFM group received the “V-Low multimedia broadcasting plan authorization” from the government.

　V-Low multimedia broadcasting deploys a new broadcasting service by using the low VHF band that was used for Analog TV channels 1 – 3.

　It is a service with a multi-screen such as smartphone, tablet, and signage as the main axis. Both free service with ads and paid service with fee are possible. It is a hardware/software separation type, which separates the hardware business that emits electric waves, and the software business that compiles contents.

　And “IPDC” for which I serve as the representative of the consortium is used. It is a method in which a communication technology called IP (Internet Protocol) is superimposed for the broadcasting airwave, and information is distributed to multi-screen by cross communication and broadcasting. It is a network rather than TV or radio. It is an app rather than a broadcasting channel.

　The government started the discussion on the fusion of communication and broadcasting in 1992. The legal system called “Fusion Law” was prepared in 2010. It started coming to reality six years after that.

　However, when we looked at the fusion of communication and broadcasting from the broadcasting side, it was mostly the discussion of contents. It was contents delivery on the network or a smart TV at the most. That is a very important theme, but I put the focus on V-Low because its effective use is finally materialized with the existence of “airwave,” which is one of the management resources along with contents.

　V-Low utilizes airwaves via IPDC.

　For example, ideas are being promoted such as the usage by automakers for navigation and other information provision, and usage by municipalities for providing disaster prevention administrative information. In other words, broadcasting airwaves are rented for B2B.

　This could be regarded as communication instead of broadcasting in regulations, depending on the usage. It is the usage method the new law of 2010 had anticipated. This also means that ¥4 trillion broadcasting industry is entering the ¥16 trillion communication industry. Can the broadcasting side that disliked the invasion of communication and IT into their industry change their attitude, and go on the reverse offensive? We will see.

Read More

Regular Athletic Meets of the Future

 At the event "Regular Athletic Meets of the Future", I made a presentation entitled "The Challenges of 2020", which called for the development of sports in which anyone can participate and become a superhuman.

 We have always been wanting to enhance our bodies. In order to enhance our arms and legs, we have made canes, artificial limbs, and life buoys, followed by ships, cars, airplanes, and then rockets. We have become able to move long distances at lightning-fast speeds.
 In order to enhance our sight and hearing, we have made spectacles, hearing aids, and speakers, followed by telephones, televisions, and then the Internet. We have become able to communicate over long distances at lightning-fast speeds.
 Our bodies have been enhanced through external objects, but by restoring that technology to our bodies, what exactly are our enhanced bodies? This is the question that is being asked. Let us move forward. Let us become superhumans. Let us create superhuman sports.

 What is necessary for this to occur? We must develop the technology for this. We must gather our design capabilities together. We also need to have the managerial abilities to run big projects. Rules and government policies need to be put in place to define the extent to which it is accepted by the society. We will be tested on our ability to put all of this together.
 That alone is not enough. We need money. It is important to have athletes and players who are willing to put this plan into action. The crowds of spectators and participants are also important. In addition, we need a place to hold events like this. In other words, all of these things must occur. We will create a platform for this. Let everyone lend their strength for us to create this platform together.

 I have started 2 projects.
 The first is the Superhuman Sports Committee. It will develop new sports by gathering scientists representing the fields of VR, robotics, neuroscience, sports science, and games. We will bring in the industrial world and the government into this venture from now on.
 The other is the plan to create a digital, content-based district. It is a plan to create a hub of technology, design, and business in the Takeshiba area of Tokyo. The hub will be opened in 2019, and I wish to hold the Superhuman Olympics there.
 This place is also a special ward in the strategic planning of the country, so let us have it associated as the "special superhuman ward". From Tokyo, let us show the future to the world.

Read More

Paralympics - The Superhuman Olympics

 Athlete Markus Rehm, who was the gold medalist in the long jump event at the London Paralympics, emerged victorious at the German Athletics Championships with a world-record jump of 8m 24cm. However, there was a leak by a representative of the European Championships held at Zurich that his artificial leg may have increased his jumping power. The delegation from the German Athletics Association has not confirmed this.
The day has finally come when physically disabled people are able to defeat able-bodied people. It is exciting yet thrilling at the same time.

 2020 in Tokyo will see a rapid succession of better results in the Paralympics than the Olympics. The event with artificial arms, artificial limbs, and assistive devices will become a superhuman competition. Will it be recognized as such? Strict restrictions have been introduced even for the swimsuits of able-bodied people, so assistive devices will give rise to important discussions beyond swimsuit regulations.

 If physically disabled people can become superhumans with assistive devices, then able-bodied people will look upon them with jealousy. Will there come a day where able-bodied people chop off their arms, legs, and parts of their bodies? That would most likely be prohibited. Or maybe it will eventually be encouraged? Will it result in a divide between countries based on religious reasons? Will Japan, with its lenient regulations, turn into a cyborg power?

 As we mention such things, I wish to create superhuman sports where people, regardless of whether they are handicapped, can make full use of devices to compete with each other. I want to create a sports festival where anyone can become a superhuman.
As a joint representative, I have formed a "Superhuman Sports Committee". We will develop new sports together with an assembly of scientists representing the fields of robotics, neuroscience, sports science, and games.
We plan to turn them into official sports in the future.

Read More

Big Hero 6, alias "Baymax"

 I have watched "Baymax" (Original title: Big Hero 6), directed by Don Hall and Chris Williams.
 The original work depicted a superhero team in Japan, so there is much love in it towards Japanese pop culture. The protagonist Hiro and his elder brother Tadashi both sport Japanese hairstyles and fashion. The face of the expressionless Baymax is also modeled after a Japanese suzu bell.
 However, with robots, universities, family, revenge, friendship, action, thrill, fantasy… The grandeur of the organization and the intertwining plot is exactly one would expect of a movie that even has adults impressed. There is no way that Japan can create this now.

 The story unfolds in San Fransokyo. While the real San Francisco pops up in a bird's eye view of the city, once you go down to the streets, you will notice an air of Shimbashi and Shinjuku.
 A team consisting of 5 rangers and "Baymax", a memento of Hiro's elder brother. This team formation is similar to that of "Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger". The scene where Baymax sacrifices his own life to save Hiro is reminiscent of the final episode of "Giant Robo".
 Putting these interesting analyses aside, the thing that kept me hooked in the movie theater was that the movie was completely in line with my work.

 Tadashi is involved with robot research and development at the university, whereas Hiro is hoping to enter it. The microbot villains are opposed by cyborg technology. From research and development and the cultivation of talent to the creation of businesses. Our Takeshiba "CiP" is a project that aims to fulfill just that.
 The environment for robot development that appeared in the movie seems to have been created in reference to places such as MIT, Harvard, and CMU. The university campus is a fusion of Stanford University and Japanese architectural styles. I watched as I thought, "Wouldn't it be nice if I could make such an environment?"
 Hiro and his friends made enhancements to their bodies with mechanical armor. A nerdy university student equips a machine and gains exceptional power to run about the land, air, and sea. This is indeed the dream of making "superhuman sports" a reality. We, the Superhuman Sports Committee, will have mad scientists crossing swords with each other in the development of superhuman sports.
 Let us make the world of Big Hero 6 a reality in Tokyo. That is what the movie made me think.

Read More

The rise of uber-smart technology

  I was part of the MIT Media Lab 15 years ago, and the theme we pursued was "Intelligent, Ubiquitous, Wearable", or to put it in simpler terms, "Smart, Everything, Always". We looked into the possibilities where such technology could boost the power of individuals.
 However, there are signs that such technology has finally become prevalent now, in this day and age. Perhaps the 15 years taken by devices such as PCs and smartphones to be connected together in a network was a prerequisite for this.

 Several examples of this are presenting themselves.
 In the state of Florida in America, a murder suspect's iPhone records were submitted to the court as evidence. The records included the murder suspect asking Siri, "I need to hide my roommate," to which Siri answered, "Swamps, reservoirs, metal foundries, dumps." This is what "smart" means.

 "Everything" will be connected via ubiquitous computing. With M2M technologies, home appliances, cars and robots will all be able to communicate with each other. Concurrently, with the spread of 3D printers, we will become able to create and distribute physical items as content. We can do this to anything and everything. Even in Japan, a man who created guns using a 3D printer received a 2-year prison sentence after being charged with a crime under the Ordnance Manufacturing Act.

 "Always". Mobile technology is a means for us to be connected "anytime". Wearable technology will do so "always". The switches will never be turned off. They will always be on.
 Bills were submitted in 8 states of the US regarding restrictions of the usage of "Google Glass" while driving. While they did not make it past Congress, enforcing them would be difficult even if they did. Even if it was worn, anyone could excuse themselves saying, "I didn't turn it on." It does not end there. It appears that a contact lens version will be making its appearance as well, so it will become impossible to tell if the device is being worn, or not. Even software that has functions to assist in driving will soon be developed, and there are likely to be advocates that insist, "It is safer to install them."

 Multi-device systems, cloud networks, and social services together form up a complete set of "smart" technology, and we are now moving toward the next stage of intelligent, ubiquitous, and wearable technology. "Uber-smart" technology, so to speak.

Read More

Closed and open

 IP2.0, a project that concerns itself with the debate on the issue of intellectual property entering a new playing field, has started.
 Domestic rules do not apply to overseas servers, so Japanese business are on the receiving end of an unfair tax and copyright system. Japanese video game companies have established independent regulations, but international platforms such as Google and the App Store do not follow them, thus domestic game makers are losing out to overseas companies. What should we do about this?
 France and Italy impose fines and taxes on Google. China adds restrictions to the activities of overseas corporations. There are open talks about tactics to form regional blocs. Bloc economies have drawn much flak politically and economically, but in the digital playing field, there exist arguments that affirm them. That is how terrific the pace of globalization is.
 If the EU and China form a bloc, what should Japan do? If Japan joins the bloc, it will no longer be able to sustain itself independently. Even if Japan relies on America just because of that, the competition from Google, Apple, and Amazon lies in America.

 In contrast to that, there is also the strategy of suppressing the rules of individual countries and shifting toward a more open and multinational set of rules. We have WTO for trade and commerce, WIPO for intellectual property, and recently we have TPP.
 Should there be separate rules for each of the modern nations, or should there be a multinational society? This is a 100-year-old topic, ever since Wilson championed the principles of harmony through the formation of the League of Nations. The fact that this topic has resurfaced at this point in time attests to the power of digital technology.
 The power of countries, once thought to be immoveable entities, is showing signs of uncertainty. International business platforms sometimes demonstrate international power beyond that of the influence of entire countries. Similarly, meta-level global decision making beyond the scope of individual countries is sought after in the TPP.

Read More

The societal order destroyed by the Internet

 It has been 20 years since the Internet started becoming widespread. Recently, there have been a number of cases where it has caused damage to the "societal order".

  A number of teenagers in Fukuoka were prosecuted for "dueling". The junior high school students made a pact to fight it out via the social networking service LINE, and through LINE, about 100 spectators also gathered to watch the drama unfold.
 The crime of dueling was laid out in a law over 120 years ago, before the establishment of the penal code, and that law has rarely been applied until now. Digital media has managed to unearth the society of a century ago. It has become easier for insular communities to incite duels, and for them to gather spectators.

 There has also been an account of an increase in the number of "nameless" delinquent gangs, which do not possess group names. These are social delinquents that assemble and operate via Twitter and LINE. They do not wish to be bound by the rules of traditional gangs. They do not need leaders or an organization. They assemble and run whenever they want to do so. The digital world is promoting actions purely based on their own intentions to break the rules.

 Our individual existences have also become dependent on the Internet.
 According to the American online employment website CareerBuilder, 51% of employers have rejected job applications after looking at social media. More so than resumes and interviews, one's net history presents a more accurate view of a person. Building up an online persona has become a more powerful method than making an impression on real life interviews.

 Organizational and social structures and also going with the flow. Numerous closed communities have sprung up, and have become opaque from the outside. At the same time, they form connections with each other, collapse, and again transform into other communities. In the midst of this, the individualism accorded to each person has increased, but every person is remembered by the Internet, and is personally bound by it.
 These 20 years. The generation that was born into the Internet age has begun to emerge in society, and it seems that the union between what is real and what is virtual has already changed from a "revolution" to an "established fact".

Read More