Computer Software

Japan

Overview                                          

 

(millions of U.S. $)                     2004                 2005(estimated)            2006(estimated)

Total Market Size                   132,065            137,880                          146,880

Total Local Production            128,258            132,050                          140,390

Total Exports                                 292                   800                                 980

Total Imports                              3,326                4,500                              4,950

Imports from the U.S.                 3,003                3,310                              3,540

(Note:  The above statistics are unofficial CS estimates.)

 

Japan’s software business has been growing steadily as Japan’s investment in IT has shifted from hardware and network infrastructure to software and services. By industry sector, manufacturing, finance, information services, and government procurement are currently the major buying segments. In fact, these four segments together currently account for over 60% of total market revenue. 

 

Given Japan's increased focus on the protection of personal information — a "privacy" law was established in 2005 — Japanese businesses are increasingly interested in IT security.

 

Best Prospects/Services                                            

 

Information security software, embedded software for consumer electronics and other software products that utilize improved hardware and network infrastructure.

 

Opportunities                                      

 

For U.S. exporters, the Japanese software market is attractive in terms of the size and demand for quality software imports.  This trend should continue as the Japanese software industry historically struggles with increasing development costs and a lack of skilled engineers. There are three key elements to launching software products into the Japanese market: (1) localization — localization includes Japanese translation, testing, and customization. Software suppliers are required to provide not only translations but to consider Japanese business customs and culture to meet local client needs; (2) support capability — Japanese language support is mandatory; and (3) product quality — quality control is one of the most important considerations for Japanese users.

 

Event:   WPC Expo 2007

Date:    October 2007

Venue:  Tokyo Big Sight

Organizer:         Nikkei Business Publication, Inc.

Web:            expo.nikkeibp.co.jp/wpc/english/index.html

 

Resources         

 

Computer Software Association of Japan (CSAJ)

www.csaj.jp/english/index_e.html

 

Japan Information Technology Services Association (JISA)

www.jisa.or.jp/english/index.html

 

 

CS Japan Contact: Mr. Toshihiro Matsuda (Tokyo)      Toshihiro.Matsuda@N0SPAM.mail.doc.gov