Japan

By MacRumors Staff

Japan Articles

iOS App Store General Feature Desaturated

Japan Preparing EU-Style Law to Force Apple to Allow App Sideloading and More

Wednesday December 27, 2023 2:11 am PST by
Japan is preparing antitrust legislation to force Apple to allow app sideloading and alternative payment methods for in-app purchases, Nikkei Asia reports. The plans by Japan's Fair Trade Commission focus on combating Apple and Google's dominance in app stores and payments, search, browsers, and operating systems. The regulation could encompass a wide range of changes to Apple's practices,...
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App Store May Violate Japanese Antitrust Law

Thursday February 9, 2023 9:36 am PST by
Apple's App Store policies may be violating Japanese antitrust law, according to a new report from the Japan Fair Trade Commission (FTC) that was shared by Nikkei. Japanese regulators do not believe there is enough "competitive pressure" on Apple and Google as the two companies have a duopoly in mobile operating systems and dominate the app market. Japanese regulators want Apple and Google...
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Tim Cook and Japanese PM Kishida Discussed User Privacy, Digital 'My Number' IDs, and More

Friday December 30, 2022 8:41 am PST by
When Apple CEO Tim Cook visited Japan earlier this month, he met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to discuss the App Store, Apple's investments in Japan, and iPhone features that could be adopted in the future, according to a new report from Nikkei. Kishida asked Cook to enable a digital version of Japan's My Number identification cards, which are issued to all Japanese residents....
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Tim Cook Pays Tribute to Apple's Enduring Partnership With Sony to Develop 'World's Leading Camera Sensors' for iPhones

Tuesday December 13, 2022 12:51 am PST by
Tim Cook today publicly paid tribute to Sony's long-term partnership with Apple in creating cutting-edge camera sensors for successive iPhone models for over a decade. In a tweet posted during his visit to Sony's camera development facility in Kumamoto, Japan, Cook acknowledged the company's successful partnership with Apple to create "the world's leading camera sensors for ‌iPhone‌," and...
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Apple Increases Prices in Japan by Up To 25%

Friday July 1, 2022 7:03 am PDT by
Apple today increased the price of iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch models in Japan by up to 25 percent. The price hikes, first reported by Nikkei Asia, have been triggered by a fall in the value of the yen and a widening interest rate gap between Japan and the United States. The iPhone 13 previously started at 98,800 yen (~$730) in Japan, but now costs 117,800 yen (~$870), an increase of...
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Apple Maps Gains AR Walking Directions in Tokyo, Japan

Wednesday May 25, 2022 3:59 am PDT by
In iOS 15, Apple's Maps app includes the ability to use augmented reality walking directions in some big cities, and today we learn that Tokyo has become the latest place that you can use it. The AR mode can map walking directions onto the real world by using your iPhone's rear camera, making it easier to see where you need to go in built-up areas and reducing the need to look down at your...
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Apple Protests Call for Third-Party App Stores and Lower Platform Fees in Japan

Tuesday April 26, 2022 5:23 am PDT by
Apple today hit back at a report from the Japanese government indicating that the company could be hit with new regulation to ensure fair competition in the smartphone operating system market, The Japan Times reports. The Japanese government's interim report expressed concern over Apple and Google's control of the smartphone operating system market, particularly with regards to pre-installed ...
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Apple and Google 'Duopoly' to Come Under Scrutiny in the UK

Tuesday June 15, 2021 4:45 am PDT by
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has today announced an investigation into the "duopoly" of Apple and Google on mobile ecosystems, just one day after a similar investigation was initiated in Japan. The CMA will be taking a closer look at Apple and Google's "effective duopoly" on the supply of operating systems, including iOS and Android, the App Store and Google Play Store, ...
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Visa Launches Apple Pay Support in Japan

Tuesday May 11, 2021 4:55 am PDT by
Visa has announced that starting today, customers in Japan will be able to use their Visa debit or credit card with Apple Pay. Customers with Visa cards issued by Aplus, SMBC Finance Service, NTT DoCoMo, Credit Saison, JACCS, Mitsui Sumitomo Bank Card, and Rakuten cards will be able to add their card to their Wallet on iPhone and Apple Watch. Japan has set an ambitious goal of...
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Apple Dominated Japan's Smartphone Market in 2020

Thursday February 25, 2021 4:02 am PST by
According to research firm IDC (via GizChina), Apple dominated the smartphone market in Japan over the fourth quarter of 2020, with the iPhone brand accounting for over half of all phone sales in the country. As per the report, the mobile market reached 11.432 million shipments in Q4 2020, and 52.6% of all smartphone sales in Japan were iPhones, substantially contributing to a 10.6%...
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Japan Preparing to Regulate Big Tech in Collaboration with U.S. and Europe

Monday October 19, 2020 7:45 am PDT by
Japan has followed the United States, Australia, and numerous countries around the world in preparing to heavily regulate big tech companies, including Apple, due to antitrust disputes and fears about market control (via Reuters). Japan is reportedly "laying the groundwork" to regulate big tech companies including Apple, Google, Amazon, and Facebook. Kazuyuki Furuya, chairman of Japan's...
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Apple Watch ECG Feature Receives Final Medical Approval in Japan

Monday September 7, 2020 2:10 am PDT by
Apple's ECG app and irregular heart rhythm notifications on the Apple Watch Series 4 and 5 have received domestic approval and certification from Japan's medical authorities, indicating that both features should go live in the country very soon. The approval was confirmed by the Japanese Association for the Advancement of Medical Equipment (JAAME) on Friday, September 4, and subsequently...
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Japanese Developers Criticize Apple's App Store Policies and Approval Process

Friday September 4, 2020 1:34 am PDT by
The ongoing dispute between Apple and Epic Games has spurred complaints from Japanese game developers about Apple's App Store business model and the way it handles third-party app submissions. Bloomberg reports that some developers in the Japanese gaming market have been emboldened by the dispute and are becoming more vocal about their own concerns, which including Apple's 30% commission rate...
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Apple Watch ECG Feature Likely Coming Soon to Japan and Brazil

Saturday June 6, 2020 1:21 am PDT by
Apple has included an ECG function in new Apple Watch models since 2018, providing users in select territories with the ability to measure the electrical activity of their heart. Apple now appears to be ready to extend the ECG feature to Brazil and Japan, based on recent government filings. According to MacOtakara, Japan's Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) recently updated...
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Apple to Start Reopening Stores in Japan This Week

Monday May 25, 2020 3:49 am PDT by
Apple is set to start reopening its retail stores in Japan this week after having been closed for months because of the global health crisis. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman notes that Apple's website says stores in Fukuoka and Nagoya Sakae will reopen on May 27. Reopening dates for the country's eight other Apple stores have not yet been posted. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has lifted the...
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Apple Begins Selling Certified Refurbished 16-Inch MacBook Pro Models Internationally

Wednesday February 26, 2020 2:16 am PST by
Apple has been offering certified refurbished 16-inch MacBook Pro models in the United States for a couple of weeks now, but today it started selling refurb 16-inch models through its international online stores for the first time since the notebook was released in November 2019. All of the refurbished configurations are discounted by 15 percent compared to the equivalent brand new models....
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Apple's 'Back to School' Event Kicks Off in Japan, Offering Gift Cards With Mac or iPad Purchase

Wednesday February 5, 2020 8:39 am PST by
Apple's annual Back to School event launched in Japan today, with Apple offering students a gift card worth up to 18,000 yen ($165) when making a purchase. The highest gift card amount is available with the purchase of a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac Pro, or ‌iMac‌, with Apple offering 12,000 yen for iPad Pro and iPad Air models. As noted by Japanese site Mac Otakara, the educational...
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Apple Holding New Year's Shopping Event in Japan on January 2

Wednesday December 25, 2019 9:15 am PST by
Apple today announced that it will be holding a one-day New Year's shopping event in Japan on Thursday, January 2, offering customers an Apple Store gift card worth up to ¥24,000 with the purchase of select Apple products. Full details have yet to be revealed, but last year, Apple Store gift card values ranged between ¥3,000 and ¥24,000 for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV, ...
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Tim Cook Visits Japan and Singapore to Meet With Developers and Employees [Updated]

Monday December 9, 2019 3:57 am PST by
Apple CEO Tim Cook has been touring Tokyo, Japan over the last few days, meeting with local employees, developers, healthcare experts, and others. Cook has been documenting the trip on his Twitter account. Cook has traveled to several countries for meets and greets during his eight-year tenure as Apple CEO, including France and Germany in September. He has also visited Canada, China,...
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Japanese FTC Investigating Apple's Partnerships With Suppliers

Monday August 5, 2019 6:10 pm PDT by
Japan's Fair Trade Commission is investigating Apple to determine whether it pressured Japanese suppliers and abused its position of power, thereby violating antimonopoly rules, reports Reuters. The FTC in Japan surveyed Japanese companies and found that Apple had signed contracts forcing its partners to provide free technology and know-how for parts manufacturing. When one of the...