Wie „Cool Japan“ Japans Coolness ruinierte – Japan ist die weltweit führende Nation und das Top-Reiseziel. Wie hat der staatliche Fonds, der zum Verkauf von „Cool Japan“ im Ausland eingerichtet wurde, 54 Milliarden Yen (333 Millionen US-Dollar) verloren? Hier erfahren Sie, wie die Angst des Landes, die Geekigkeit von „Otaku Japan“ anzunehmen, zu einem massiven Patzer führte.
11 Kommentare
Min $10mm USD ticket size was the problem. Many exciting startups, including mine, were never considered because they would only back later-stage companies. They also wouldn’t lead rounds. The people I met working there were nice enough, but they had no idea how to sell the mandated content they were looking for abroad.
i think the fumble came from japanese far right xenophobia
They didn’t avoid anime or otaku culture at all. Akb48 was like their main spokespersons
Given the general way that Japanese view things they think are popular „overseas“ it’s easy to see how so much time and money was wasted to accomplish next to nothing.
Most things that got popular outside of Japan did so in spite of anything done from the Japanese side. How much effort/funding went into providing better international access to popular media like anime, drama and music?
Still remember reading „[Japan’s Gross National Cool“](https://foreignpolicy.com/2009/11/11/japans-gross-national-cool/) years ago and later realizing that it was never going to happen in any significant way.
How is Japan the top travel destination in the world? France gets the most practically every year and is way way ahead of Japan in terms of international tourist arrivals.
And last year was the most ever in a year for Japan as well: https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h02673/
I say this all the time but as a long term resident I can tell you Japan suck at branding.
They can’t for the life of them think outside the box and they underestimate just how unintelligible a lot of their imagery is to outsiders.
Cool Japan was just as out of touch as Shinzo Abe was. So really the picture here is appropriate.
Lucky for Japan, people worldwide got really obsessed with Japan after covid and social media hyped it up. Plus a favorable exchange rate made it a cheap destination
The horrid name aside, what specifically were they even promoting?
Back then, if you built quality stuff, people would naturally flock to buy it.
Now, over-the-top PR either drives outrage and creates haters, or drags you into political correctness. Makes you wonder if it was ever worth it.
For a second I thought this was about wearing short-sleeved shirts to work and ditching the necktie.
They don’t like foreigners or foreign modes of thought so why would they be able to understand or market to foreigners in an effective way that benefits their interests? It would take people with international experience and anyone in the know realizes Japan doesn’t put those people in positions of power or decision making unless they’ve got a rich daddy