News On Japan

Music schools in Japan on Thursday filed for Cultural Affairs Agency Commissioner Ryohei Miyata's decision instructing copyright management body JASRAC not to collect royalties from them until a court ruling over their dispute is finalized. (Jiji)

A 17-year-old boy died after being hit by a hammer thrown by another student practising the hammer throw on school grounds in Fujioka, Gunma Prefecture, on Wednesday night. (Japan Today)

Police in Tokyo say a man died after being rescued from a charred men's room at the head office of a major business newspaper. (NHK)

The Japanese government is considering making the Dec. 23 national holiday, the birthday of Emperor Akihito, a normal day after his planned abdication on April 30, 2019, officials said Thursday. (Jiji)

People in a town in Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, that got up early enough on Friday were treated to the sight of the sun rising over the peak of Mount Fuji. (NHK)

Preservation and repair work for 1,001 statues of thousand-armed Kannon Bodhisattva at the Sanjusangendo Buddhist hall in Kyoto, western Japan, has been completed. (Jiji)

A pet food industry survey on Friday showed that the estimated number of cats kept as pets in Japan exceeded that for dogs in 2017 for the first time since the survey began in 1994. (Jiji)

The welfare ministry said Friday that 67 pct of all households on welfare in Japan will see cuts in livelihood aid chiefly to cover food and utility costs, starting from October 2018. (Jiji)

Japanese births are expected to total 941,000 in 2017, the lowest tally in statistics going back to 1899, likely resulting in a natural decline in population by more than 400,000 as deaths mark a postwar peak. (Nikkei)

Japan's Emperor Akihito turned 84 on Saturday. (NHK)

Saitama Prefectural Police have arrested a 92-year-old man for allegedly killing his son with a hammer at their residence in Fukaya City on Saturday, reports Fuji News Network (tokyoreporter.com)

Prosecutors have announced the non-prosecution of four men over the alleged molestation of a woman inside a train carriage in Tokyo earlier this year, reports NHK. (tokyoreporter.com)

As a part of the investigation into the rigging of arcade games, Osaka Prefectural Police have discovered a manual used by employees that detailed how to ensure that customers never won prizes, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

Five bicycles were torched one after the other during a one-hour period early Sunday in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture. (Japan Today)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a male Pakistani who is suspected in multiple pickpocketing cases in the Ueno area of Taito Ward this year, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

A government survey shows that the percentage of Japanese workers belonging to labor unions has fallen to a record low of 17.1 percent, for the 6th straight year-on-year decline. (NHK)

NTT Docomo on Monday announced its Japan Welcome SIM TM series will introduce Plan 0 to allow overseas visitors in Japan to access the Internet for free via the Docomo mobile network, from Tuesday. The free service will initially be available in Hokkaido and Niigata prefectures, after which other areas will be added sequentially. (Japan Today)

The Japanese government has decided to allow families of gambling addicts to restrict their kin from using public gambling facilities and online betting. The move comes as Japan prepares to legalize casinos. (NHK)

Japan's Information-technology Promotion Agency and the industry ministry have concluded a 15-year project to enable computers to handle all kanji characters. (NHK)

The Japanese economy has been recovering moderately since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's second administration was launched in December 2012, with a gleam of hope now seen for pulling out of deflation. (Jiji)

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