JETRO Spotlight February 2011

Welcome to the latest edition of JETRO Spotlight USA, JETRO USA's national e-newsletter featuring the latest articles and events on our website. Each month JETRO brings you relevant and timely articles highlighting business opportunities between the United States and Japan along with updates on JETRO seminars and events.

Contents in this newsletter:

• Measures to Encourage Company Location in Japan: Measures Connected with Attracting Foreign Companies
• Subsidy Program for Projects Promoting Asian Site Location in Japan

• ZS Associates saw effects of Japan office almost immediately after opening
• Test Engineering Company Averna Anticipates Japan Office to Help Triple Japan Revenue

• Maker of vacuum heat treating furnaces Ipsen opens second sales office in Japan
• Travel and expense management solutions provider Concur establishes Japanese joint venture with SunBridge
• Messaging middleware appliance provider Solace Systems signs strategic partnership agreement with Serisys Solutions for Japan

• Shochu: The More Popular Alcohol in Japan Than Sake
• U.S.-Japan Dialogue to Promote Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Job Creation Symposium
• New Alternatives for Lower Calorie Intake
• Japan Pavilion @ The International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York 2011
• JETRO Bizmatch Program @ Game Connection 2011
• East Asian Economic Integration Symposium
• Greens from the Sea

Announcements from the Japanese Government

Measures to Encourage Company Location in Japan: Measures Connected with Attracting Foreign Companies

Japanese government decided to implement various measures to encourage foreign direct investment in Japan, including (1) lowering corporate taxes, (2) subsidies for companies setting up operations in Japan, (3) taxable income deduction on companies certified as Asian headquarters and companies engaging in businesses in the global strategic special zones. Based on the government decision, JETRO compiled and prepared the outline of the measures.

>> Read more

Subsidy Program for Projects Promoting Asian Site Location in Japan

The Subsidy Program for Promoting Site Location in Japan is intended to sustain and strengthen high- value-added business sites in Japan and to achieve sustainable growth of the Japanese economy by supporting the establishment of new high-value added sites in Japan, such as Head Sites or R&D Sites, which have been proven to have a significant impact on the Japanese economy, and to strategically and proactively invite and build high-value-added business functions that match the strength of the Japanese economy.

>> Read more and apply

JETRO Case Studies

Follow Up: ZS Associates Saw Effects of Japan Office Almost Immediately After Opening

Dan Peterson, Managing Principal, Operations at ZS Associates, a management consulting firm that specializes in sales and marketing issues, illustrates how having an office in Japan impacted the firm's business in one of the largest markets in the world.

>> Read more

Test Engineering Company Averna Anticipates Japan Office to Help Triple Japan Revenue

In April 2010, Averna, a test and quality solution provider for communications and electronics device makers, established a branch office in Yokohama, Japan by taking advantage of JETRO's free services. We spoke with Regional Sales Manager for Asia, Etienne Frenette, about what opportunities led Averna to Japan, his experience developing the business there, and why he anticipates tripling Japan revenue in the next few years.

>> Read more

News Update: Companies making progress in Japan

Keep an eye on what companies are doing in Japan with this monthly news update.

Maker of vacuum heat treating furnaces Ipsen opens second sales office in Japan
January 11, 2011

Illinois-based designer and manufacturer of thermal processing systems, Ipsen, Inc. recently announced the opening of its second sales office in Tokyo, Japan. The new office is set to focus on the Kanto region. Ipsen serves a number of markets, including aerospace, medical, energy, chemical and automotive.

Sources: Company press release  and company representative


Travel and expense management solutions provider Concur establishes Japanese joint venture with SunBridge
January 19, 2011

Redmond, Washington provider of travel and expense management solutions, Concur, announced the signing of an agreement to establish Concur Japan, a joint venture between Concur, Sunbridge Corporation--which also formed a joint venture with Salesforce.com in Japan--and Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff.

"The embrace of cloud computing in Japan continues to drive growth opportunities for SaaS providers that offer real and compelling value to their clients. Increasingly, Japanese companies are turning to Web and mobile solutions to help them reduce costs, increase scalability and flexibility, and make life easier for their employees," said Steve Singh, chairman and CEO of Concur.

Sources: Company press release  and company representative


Messaging middleware appliance provider Solace Systems signs strategic partnership agreement with Serisys Solutions for Japan
January 26, 2011

Ottawa, Canada company Solace Systems announced the signing of an agreement with Hong Kong- based Serisys Solutions Limited for the Japanese market. Under the agreement, Serisys, which has an office in Tokyo, will exclusively develop Solace's business for domestic financial services providers in Japan.

Sources: Company press release  and company representative

See how you can use JETRO's free services to establish your company's office in Japan.

 
 

Upcoming Events

We welcome your comments or suggestions for future article topics. Feel free to contact us at www.jetro.org/contact