This time, I traveled from Akita to Tokyo on Komachi Express(Shinkansen), fastest train with 320 kph/198 mph top speed. Enjoy the scenic views and high-speed train experience with Shinkansen Komachi. ( travelgeek)

Japan's Supreme Court has ruled that performances by music school students are not subject to copyright payments, while copyright holders may charge for musical works used by teachers in music classes. (NHK)

One of Asia's largest film festivals has kicked off in Tokyo with the first red-carpet event for actors and directors in three years. (NHK)

A four-year-old boy fell to his death from an apartment building where he lived in Tokyo’s Edogawa Ward on Saturday. (Japan Today)

Japanese companies are striving to build supply chains that do not depend on China, amid that country's growing conflict with the U.S. This is expected to dramatically increase the costs of all manner of products. Are companies prepared for "zero-China?" (Nikkei)

Japan hotel room rates have soared since the country launched financial incentives to get people to hit the road, and with international tourists expected to flood into the country in the coming months, the prices are not expected to go down any time soon. (Nikkei)

Japan's Emperor and Empress have visited the southern prefecture of Okinawa for the first time since the Emperor's enthronement in 2019. They paid tribute to the war dead there. (NHK)

In this long-overdue video, we introduce the Narikomaya acting house, one of the largest and most prestigious in the kabuki world, particularly since the early XX century, due to the massive influence of the Utaemon line in the development and preservation of onnagata acting. (Kabuki In-Depth)

Japanese police have sent papers to prosecutors on a US sailor who injured passers-by when he tackled them from behind in Kanagawa Prefecture, near Tokyo. (NHK)

Japan's government and central bank intervened in the currency market early Saturday to support a falling yen, sources told Nikkei, triggering a dramatic rebound against the dollar. (Nikkei)

Japan's badminton governing body has apologized for a series of scandals and improper conduct involving staff members and published reprimands of its senior officials. But there was no announcement of resignations. (NHK)

Chinese buyers have become interested in farmland in Japan, and policymakers in the country are uncomfortable with this. (Spotlight on China)

Food prices in Japan rose at the fastest pace since July 1991 during the past week, Nikkei data shows, as producers scramble to pass on the impact of a softening yen and high commodity costs. (Nikkei)

Japan's core consumer inflation rate accelerated to a fresh eight-year high of 3.0% in September, exceeding the central bank's 2% target for the sixth straight month as the yen's slump to 32-year lows continue to push up import costs. (Reuters)

On Tuesday, comedian Koji Nakamoto was hit by a car while crossing a street in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. Unfortunately, he passed away from his injuries the following day due to an acute subdural hematoma. (fanfest.com)

More than 2,000 Ukrainians had entered Japan as of mid-October, according to the Immigration Services Agency, living in prefectures across the nation as they worked to build a new life. (stripes.com)

A Japanese domestic airline is seeking to fill empty seats by offering subscriptions to Tokyo-based workers that will let them move to a city nearly 900 kilometers (550 miles) away, and commute back-and-forth to the capital by air as many times as they want. (Bloomberg)

A Tokyo court on Thursday ordered ruling party lawmaker Mio Sugita to pay Shiori Ito, a journalist and symbol of Japan's #MeToo movement, 550,000 yen ($3,700) in damages for clicking "like" on several tweets she said defamed her. (Kyodo)

Japan's Foreign Ministry has lowered its coronavirus infection alert for travel overseas. It no longer requires people to avoid non-essential travel to any other country. (NHK)

Japan's Empress Emerita Michiko turned 88 on Thursday. The Empress Emerita moved in April from a temporary dwelling to her current residence in the Akasaka Estate in Tokyo's Minato Ward, where she lived when she was Crown Princess. (NHK)

The Japanese government launched a nationwide discount campaign last week to kick-start domestic tourism. (NHK)

An independent panel investigating fraudulent inspections at Japan's Mitsubishi Electric has uncovered dozens more cases. (NHK)

South Korea says visitors from Japan will be allowed to enter the country without a visa from November 1. (NHK)

The Japanese yen weakened to the 150 level against the US dollar at one point during Tokyo trading on Thursday. It is the first time the currency has dropped to this level in 32 years. (NHK)

The yen's rapid and one-sided depreciation is "negative" for the Japanese economy, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said Wednesday after the currency hit a fresh 32-year low versus the U.S. dollar. (Kyodo)