FOCUS - JAPAN: Rising adspend helps shake off the blues

Ad spend in Japan this year is expected to snap a two-year losing streak, according to a forecast by Dentsu Inc, which predicted that adspend in the four major media - newspapers, magazines, radio and television - will total Y3,798.6 billion, up three per cent from the year before. Adspend among all media last year came to Y5,699.6 billion, down 1.2 per cent. The upbeat mood reflects positive developments in the business operating environment locally and regionally. Greater market deregulation and liberalisation in Japan - such as the introduction of new financial reforms allowing more foreign financial institutions to enter the country - the commencement of digital satellite broadcasting, the expansion of the information and telecommunications market and the continued strong growth of New Economy companies. Japan's strength is underlined by the latest trends as determined by nationwide studies by Dentsu. Its research entitled Actualised Lifestyles in 2000 found that Japanese will lead more Internet-oriented lives. Internet-oriented lives The Internet and various Web-based services show cyber-shopping and ebanking are becoming more common. As communications costs fall and 'Net-connected home electronics equipment becomes a reality, people's daily lives and perceptions will undergo radical change. Key online growth areas include: - Catalogue shopping - Stock transactions/banking - Music and drama - Games - 'Web Life' cell phones - Multifunction cards - Java-equipped cell phones Globally connected lives The study also found that with deregulation, international retail stores and restaurants have entered the Japanese market in quick succession in recent years. These newcomers, the agency pointed out, fit perfectly into Japan's cityscapes. People relax in American coffee shops, purchase cosmetics at British pharmacies, shop for the family at American casual clothing stores and watch soccer games transmitted by satellite from Italy. This type of globally connected daily life is becoming the norm, Dentsu said, while the image of the typical inward-looking Japanese of a decade or more ago is slowly falling by the wayside. Future design Actualised Lifestyles made one other major finding. This was that cars, personal computers and home electronic appliances with a friendly, human feel, but retaining stylistic, futuristic designs - as opposed to designs with a cool, unapproachable hi-tech feel - are enjoying immense popularity. Most popular designs are those that project an image of urban living, characterised by harmonious interaction between people and their sophisticated information technology.

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